Dicing with Death
by Kaiju29
Summary: 7th chapter soon! Sanosuke, in a ::drunken admittedly:: last ditch effort to get some money to pay back his tab at the Akabeko, gambles a certain something he doesn’t have and loses. Unfortunately, that certain ‘something’ is a someone...
1. Chapter 1

**Dicing with Death (or an angry Tanuki)**

Sanosuke, in a (drunken admittedly) last-ditch effort to get some money to pay back his tab at the Akabeko, gambles a certain something he doesn't have and loses. Unfortunately, that certain 'something' is a someone. Or rather, a certain Tanuki assistant master. With Sanosuke sloshed, Yahiko in trying to avoid lunch and Kenshin visiting his Shishou, Kaoru is 'collected' by a koban of the Kazumi boryokudan and taken to Nagoya. She narrowly escapes being sold in a brothel when she defeats the ten best bodyguards of the oyabun, and so she is hired by him to be _his_ guard...and companion to his spoilt son, Yekano. When a rival gang attacks their hideout, to who will her loyalties lie?

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**Me; Disclaimer; This plot is mine-**

**Mayu;** Damn straight!

**Me; **points this is my muse, Mayu. He's an annoying, ego-statistical, frustrating, sarcastic, sick-minded, lecherous pervert. Apart from that, he's okayish.

**Mayu;** glares You make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

**Me;** Just telling the truth.

**Mayu;** Anywho, Kaju doesn't own R.K. Me neither. I do own a rather extensive collection of fluff-bunnys, however,-

**Me;** mutters Baka…

**Mayu;** shoots death glare-collected from inside the mind of our dear author.

**Me;** Oi!

'I choose evens!' yelled a loud voice, followed by an even louder thud. Heads turned briefly, and then attention snapped back to the respective occupations.

Sagara Sanosuke groaned as the cup was lifted, revealing a three and a four. Sitting back, he rummaged into his pockets for the last few coins that had been scrounged from Katsu. Slamming them into the palm of his opponent's hand, he took a long swig of sake from the jar by his side. Thumping it down again, it clinked loudly, knocking against several _other_ jars. Empty jars. Sitting up straight again, he focused on his opponent, or at least tried to. There seemed to be several of him.

'Alright!' he roared. 'This time for sure!'

'What are you going to bet?' asked the stranger, seeming amused. That is, as far as Sanosuke could tell through the misty haze that had suddenly invaded the room.

'Hehe…look at all the pink frogies…' he muttered to himself.

'Eh?' asked the stranger, backing away slightly.

'Um…never mind. I'll bet…' Sanosuke rummaged in his pockets, bringing up a fishbone, a fluff-ball, and…

He stared at the drawing, grinning at the frozen portrait of his 'family' which Tsubame had drawn one spring afternoon. Then an idea penetrated his sake-soaked mind.

Leaning forward, he twisted the face of the picture around and showed it to the man, showing surprising accuracy for a drunk.

'What?' asked the man, absently taking the paper.

'See the girl there?' Sanosuke asked, smirking.

'You mean the redhead?'

Sanosuke sweatdropped. 'No! The black haired one.'

'Ummmm…yes?'

'She's my bet! I bet her!'

The man shrugged, handing back the drawing. 'Okay, if you're sure. Evens or odds?'

'Hmm…odds!'

The cup lifted again, and underneath….a pair of sixes. Sanosuke stared at the dice blearily, and in his first clear thought of the day, he realized; _Oh crap! Kenshin's gonna KILL me!_

Then he fainted.

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Kaoru bought the shinai down again one last time, and then wiped the perspiration off her forehead with a hot hand. Sighing, she stepped out of the dojo and called 'Kenshin! Is the bath ready?'

When no response came, she scowled momentarily, and then remembered that Kenshin had already left.

Oddly, he was going to see his Shishou, Sejiro Hiko, for a social visit. Plus bottle of sake, of course, and so Kaoru had been left alone with Sanosuke and Yahiko. Sano hadn't been seen yet, and after Kaoru offered to make lunch, Yahiko had babbled some excuse about helping Tsubame and rushed down to the Akabeko.

Dragging the shinai, she slumped onto the balcony, idly drawing in the dust on the tatami mats. She frowned. Another Kenshin-related matter. With him gone, there was no one to do the housework. Leaning back against the wooden pillar-supports, she brushed the hair out of her eyes, and then looked up, watching the clouds pass by.

'Excuse me.'

If only Kenshin was here…he was always so polite…

'Um…excuse me…?'

'Huh?' she focused on the man in front of her. 'OH! I'm really sorry. What can I do for you?' she asked, brushing herself down.

'I just wanted you to have a look at this...' The man came forward, holding something in his hand. Stepping towards him, she stretched out her hand to take the paper, and then someone moved behind her. Spinning around, she hit a second man who had been in the process of sneaking up on her with her outstretched shinai. The man doubled over, wheezing, and Kaoru started to spin around again when she felt something pressed against her face. It smelt like…

There was a thud, and the man she had hit straightened up again, rubbing his side.

'Damn she's sharp. That really hurt.'

'Stop complaining, you sound like a wuss.'

'Hmm…she's quite pretty, isn't she?' said the man, picking her up. He pried the shinai out of her fingers and snapped it in two, throwing it to the ground. 'I never liked those things. Too sissy.'

'C'mon then. the boss's prob'ly waiting.'

The two men bundled the limp form of Kaoru into the waiting carriage and drove off. About five minuets after they had left, Yahiko walked through the gate, whistling, and headed towards the kitchen.

'Hey, ugly! You there?' he yelled, dumping the package of onigiri that Tae had given him on the counter. 'Oi! Ugly?'

He frowned. 'Maybe she's visiting Maekawa dojo…damn woman, she could have waited for me…' grumbling, he made his way to his bedroom, intending to change into his training gi. Flopping down on the bed, he yawned, running his fingers through his hair. Within seconds, he was snoring loudly.

**Meanwhile...**

'You're going already, baka-deshi?' said Hiko, throwing a sake cup at him for no apparent reason.

'Yes, sessha is...' the reply came from the redheaded swordsman, who was now cleaning up the shattered bits of ceramic cup littered on the floor.

'Any reason why, or are you content enjoying annoying me?'

'Sessha has an uneasy feeling, Master. It's probably nothing, but...'

The older man sighed, swigging sake out of the huge jar in his hand, and then grumbled; 'Baka-Deshi.' before standing up again. 'If your going, at least take this.' he said, holding out something in his hand.

Kenshin looked at it. '...many thanks, Master, but...I don't think it will suit me...'

'Baka!' roared Hiko. 'It's not for you!'

'Who is it for, then?' asked Kenshin, mystified.

'That girl who came here, looking for you a little while back...I think her name was Kaoru. I like her. She has a strong spirit. Give that to her, from me.' he sat back and smirked at the confused rurouni. 'And I think it would suit you quite nicely.' he added, raising an eyebrow.

'Master!' growled Kenshin, flushing slightly. 'Sessha is not a woman; therefore it would not suit sessha!'

'Even if you're not a woman, you look like one. Remember that time that the innkeeper's son tried to chat you up?'

'Don't remind sessha, please...' mumbled Kenshin, hanging his head.

'Anyway, you'd better get going.' the dark-haired sword master said. He produced an unexpected smile. 'People are waiting for you, after all.'

Kenshin stared at him, slightly puzzled. Then he understood.

'Mas-ter!' he bleated. 'You've been drinking your homemade sake, haven't you!'

Hiko wobbled slightly, looking puzzled. 'How could you tell?' he asked, before passing out.

Kenshin glared exasperatedly at the snoring swordsman, and then his eyes softened as he looked down at the beautiful sapphire and onyx hair slide in his hand.

He smiled._ That was kind of Shishou...he must really think highly of her...sessha thinks she will love it._

**_You'd better watch out otherwise Kaoru's gonna start liking Hiko instead of us! Why don't _you_ get her a present too?_** The ever-present voice of the Battousai echoed in his head, making him cringe slightly at the thought of Kaoru with Hiko.

_You might just have a point..._

_**MIGHT? Hell, I KNOW I have a point, baka!**_

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A while later, as he reached a small town on the Hokkaido trail, he saw at least twenty small stands in the square, with large groups of people clustering around them. One stand in particular attracted his attention, and he made his was over to it, slipping easily through the crowd.

In little rows, earrings, necklaces and hair ribbons were arrayed neatly. One set of earrings caught his eye immediately; a small pair of sapphires shaped like teardrops inlayed with two tiny diamonds. He looked at them wistfully, wishing he could buy them for Kaoru, when a loud yell attracted his attention. Taking advantage of a sack of rice on the ground, he peered over the crowds heads in an effort to spot the source of the disturbance. Cursing his vertical-challangedness, he pushed his way to the front of the crowd, ignoring the mutters directed at his back.

Two men were standing in the middle of a rapidly emptying space, both glaring at one another. The smaller of the two men had a young woman just behind him, who was glowering at the other man.

'Don't you dare come near my girl, Harada!' yelled the smaller one.

'Riku, don't you think you'd be better of with me?' the bigger of the two men asked the girl, smirking.

'Get out of our way, Gangi, you pig!' yelled the girl fiercely, clenching her fists.

'I don't think I want to, Riku. I think that you should apologise for hurting my feelings.' said Gangi, cracking his knuckles.

'Stay away from her, Gangi.' the young man told him.

'Are you gonna fight me if I don't, Sata?'

'I don't want to fight you.'

The two circled, eyeing the other warily. Gangi was the first one to strike; charging forward like a wild pig, but Sata stepped smartly to one side and tripped him. As the other man sprawled in the dust, he turned to the girl and started to walk towards her.

Gangi pushed himself up, wiping away the small trickle of blood coming from his cut lip, and snarled 'You're not gonna get away with that, Sata!'

As he started to run towards the still turned back of the young man, he pulled a dagger out of the sheath in his belt.

Kenshin narrowed his eyes slightly, and, using his speed, planted himself in front of the charging man.

'Out of my way, midget!' Gangi yelled, drawing back his hand to take a swipe at him. Kenshin drew his sword and deflected the knife, and then knocked him out with one smooth swipe to the neck with his reversed-blade sword.

**_Too easy!_** jeered the Battousai.

Sata stared at him as he sheathed his sakabatto again. 'T-thanks…' he managed to stutter out.

Kenshin smiled at him. 'It's no problem.' he said, before turning and starting to make his way out of the market. Sata stared after him, and then, as an idea struck him, ran after him and tapped him on the shoulder.

'Could you come with me for a moment please?' he asked politely.

'Oro?'

The young man led him through the gawking crowd, right up to one of the stands.

The old man running it recognised Sata, and growled happily 'What have you been getting up to now, me boy?'

Sata grinned at him and then turned to Kenshin. 'Pick something and you can have it.'

Kenshin looked down at the table, and his eyes widened as he saw that it was the same one which he had been looking at before. 'Oh, no! Sessha really cannot accept something so expensive. Sessha did not wish for a reward.'

'It's alright, honestly! Dad won't mind!' the boy said, gesturing at the old man.

The old man, however, was scrutinising Kenshin closely. 'Young man…you were here just before, weren't you?'

'Um…yes, sessha was.' said Kenshin, surprised at the old man's memory.

'Here.' said the old man suddenly, catching up something from the table and pressing it into his hand. Kenshin looked down, and hiss eyes widened in surprise as he saw the teardrop earrings in the palm of his hand.

'But Sir!-' he started, and then was cut off by the old man.

'Give them to a special girl, lad. I can see you're a good man, so be off with you! I will not listen to any objections!' he said, waving Kenshin away.

_**What a strange man.**_

_You said it. But…Kaoru-dono is really going to like this._

_**Kaoru's going to love it! Thank KAMI for strange old guys!**_

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lnjbuig kl.;;;;;;;;;;kkhuyy4AXSDCDB MK, K,..

This was just added by myself in my sleep. It adds depth to the story, ne?

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Sanosuke stared at the sake jug. It divided; them morphed back into one again. He grabbed it as soon as it stopped moving and skulled it. Slamming it down again, he raped the bar for another. Instead, he got a heavy whack on the head.

'SA-NO-SUKE!' yelled a feminine voice. He groggily raised his head and cringed as he encountered the fierce glare of a certain kitsune.

'_What_ are you doing drunk at this time of day?' she yelled, grabbing him by the ear and hauling him of the stool.

'Megumi…I am in deep, deep, DEEP doggy do-do.' he said, raising his eyes guiltily. Megumi slowed down and turned to face him, eyes narrowing at the uncharacteristically gloomy and serious tone in the young man's voice.

'What did you do, Rooster-head?' she asked slowly.

'Well, you see, it like this…'

Several people on the street looked up as a loud screech was heard.

'YOU **_WHAT!_**'

'Do you have any idea how much _danger_ you've put Kaoru in? What were you thinking?'

Sanosuke scratched his head sheepishly. 'Well, I thought I'd win for sure!'

_THRWACK_!

'OW! DAMMIT WOMAN THAT HURT!'

'I could kill you if I didn't want to deny Kenshin that pleasure!' yelled Megumi.

'Oh, _shit_! Kenshin!'

'Baka Sanosuke!'

'He's going to kill me!'

Megumi glared at him, then sighed. 'We'd better go and get Yahiko. He'll be wondering where the Tanuki is.'

'Yahiko's gonna kill me too!' moaned the ex-fighter-for-hire, cringing.

Megumi twitched at his behaviour, and then she seized him by the ear and began dragging him towards the Kamiya dojo.

'_Meeeeee-guuuu-miiiiiiiiiiiii_! wailed Sanosuke.

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_Sessha has a bad feeling for some reason…_

_**Me too. We're almost there though…**_

Kenshin had hitched a ride in a carriage that was travelling to Tokyo during the night, and the miles had passed away very quickly. As he jumped out of the carriage on the outskirts of the city and thanked the driver, he bit his lip, trying to quell the strangely ominous feeling that had intensified with every passing hour. Walking along the familiar streets, he picked up some daikon radishes, a jar of mirin and some red miso, the usual weekly supplies. Glancing along side streets at the bustling crowd, he couldn't detect any sort of panic or anything which suggested that something bad had happened. He increased his pace and sighed with noticeable relief as he saw the dojo's roofs, and as he walked in, he saw that the dojo itself was unchanged. As he slipped inside the kitchen and dumped the groceries on the counter, he heard 'YOU WHAT, ROOSTER HEAD?' coming from the living room. He walked towards it, curious as to what Sanosuke had done now, and entered through the open door.

'Hello everyone. What's wrong?' he asked, walking over to one of the cushions and flopping down on it.

He caught the stares from Yahiko, Sanosuke and Megumi. 'I just decided to come home early. Where is Kaoru-dono?'

Megumi was the first one to recover, and, looking disdainfully at Sanosuke, said 'Ken-san…we have a problem. You see, Rooster head here…'

Birds took flight from the trees all around Tokyo as a resounding bellow was heard echoing down streets.

'**_SANO!'_**

People in the main street looked up, and several of them made the sign to ward off the evil eye.

'The spirits are restless today.' one muttered, hurrying to the local shrine to pray.

On reflection, maybe evil spirits would have been better…

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Kaoru came to lying on a soft mattress in the middle of a barely furnished room. She squinted groggily, then, as her head cleared and her memory went back to the two men at the dojo, she sat up quickly, stifling a gasp of pain at the sudden throbbing pain in her head. Carefully, she walked to the door and tried the handle. It was locked, as she had suspected it would be. She sat down on the bed and put her head in her hands, trying to get her mind clear of fuzz.

_Where am I?_ she wondered. _Why did those men kidnap me? Is this another **get-back-at-the-Battousai-by-kidnapping-the-little-girl** scheme?_ She lay back on the bed just as the door creaked open, and she shot up again.

A man in a plain black yukata came in, holding a bundle of material, which he threw on the bed.

'Get dressed.' he said curtly, then exited again. Kaoru heard the lock click, and she picked up the material, which revealed itself to be a black silk kimono, embroidered with silver, gold and crimson cherry-blossom petals which were scattered about the fabric, as if blown by an invisible wind. She looked down, and realised that she was only wearing a thin white yukata. She hurriedly put the kimono on, and even in her present situation couldn't help but admire the rich, smooth fabric as it slid across her skin. There was a crimson obi too, with golden spirals and lines twisting their way across the cloth in intricate designs. There was a knock at the door, and a new voice asked, 'Are you decent?'

'Y-yes…' she said, clenching her fists under the sleeves of her kimono. An old man made his way in, followed by several younger ones with drawn swords.

'Please come with me.' the old man instructed, and as she followed him, the armed men flanked her, eyeing her warily.

After they had travelled down several corridors and down some stairs, the passageway opened up into a large, richly ornamented room. The old man instructed her to stay, then hobbled off into a small antechamber. The guards around her retreated as well, and, with growing waves of panic, she wondered _what the hell is going on!_

Her attention was drawn back as the old man made another appearance, this time in the wake of a tall man with a flourishing moustache who was chatting to a shorter man, who could only be described as rat-like. The first man was also trailed by ten hulking men, all with swords, and at their appearance, the guards that had escorted her retreated.

The two men stopped in front of her, and the moustached man turned to the other.

'This is my latest acquisition. Will she do?' he asked.

The rat-like man looked at her carefully, then nodded in consent. 'How much?' he asked brusquely.

Kaoru stared at the two men, incensed. _They're treating me…like PROPERTY!_ she growled inside of her mind.

Then, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a broomstick leaning against the wall a few feet away. Her hand twitched as she scowled at the men if front of her.

_I won't go quietly! _she grinned at the thought, then casually picked up the broomstick. Immediately, several of the guards started walking towards her, drawing their swords. She faced them, broom held steady. What she didn't notice was that the conversation between the two men had stopped, and the moustached man was regarding her shrewdly, with interest in his narrowed eyes.

'Put the broom down, little girl. Then no-one will get hurt.' one of the armed men told her, reaching for the broomstick. She let him come close, under the pretence that she was struggling with the weight of the wood in her hands. As he came within striking distance, she dashed forward under his arm and behind his back, and then dispatched him with a heavy chop to the neck. He fell instantly, and she broke the head off the broom, resulting in a sharp, satisfactorily dangerous-looking point.

'You bitch!' exclaimed one of the other men. Running forward, he swung his sword over his head at her, which she dodged. She then winded him with a well-placed strike, and, while he fell to the ground clutching his stomach, seized his discarded sword. The next man charged, and as she blocked his swipe with her own sword and then hit him in the temple with the hilt, she was entirely unconscious of the pair of sharp grey eyes scrutinising her every move. As she dispatched the last man with a hard whack into his side, she spun to face the two men. The rat-faced one backed away in fear, but the other stood his ground, and, to her surprise, started to laugh.

The next words she heard surprised her so much that she almost dropped the sword.

'Would you work for me?'

'Would I WHAT!' she screeched.

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So, got it all down! YAY! Sorry about the last bit, but it IS 1'o'clock in the morning! mutters the things I do for Fan Fiction…

**Me; **Okay, if I get…um…two reviews I'll update!

**Mayu;** squints I think you're setting your standards too high…

**Me;** sob I KNOW!

Mayu; T.T;

**Me;** WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

**Mayu;** Um…please review…otherwise Kaju'll take it out on me…sweatdrops scary…gyui…

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	2. Chapter 2 FINALLY!

**Author's Worthless Ramblings; #1** (Yeah, that's right, with _capitals!_)****

I'm sorry for the long delay! Please forgive me! Something seems to be sapping what little creative spirit I possess…maybe it's the weather. –shiver--SO COLD!

**Mayu;** Who do you think you're kidding? Creative spirit? Feh…

**Disclaimer: **My name is not Watsuki Nobuhiro. Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that I definitely do not own R.K.

…such a tragedy…--sniff--

Anywho, as if I'm good at writing.

I realise that in the normal course of events I would have interjected 'that' into the middle of the sentence, but…

PLEASE REGARD ME KINDLY!

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'Kenshin…' whined Sanosuke. 'She might just be visiting Tae, you know.'

'Sanosuke, you really are stupid.' growled Yahiko, scowling.

Sanosuke, uncharacteristically, didn't hit him. Instead, he got up and walked moodily into the front garden. Picking up a stick, he chucked it hard into the fence. It splintered into pieces. He grabbed another.

In the living-room, Kenshin was sitting up against the wall, sword in hand, reflecting on his feelings.

_When exactly did sessha begin to feel…so strongly for Kaoru-dono? When did sessha's feelings change from that of a brother to…**this**?_

**_A while ago._** said the Battousai simply.

_But…it's nothing like what sessha felt for Tomoe. It's so…different. Stronger… _

**_You felt for Tomoe because she was the first one to see _you_, the man behind the hitokiri, instead of just a tool, a pawn in the revolution. Even though you…we…even after what happened before, she still loved you genuinely. She found happiness in you…but she was never lonely as Kaoru is now. After all, Tomoe had her brother, and her father. Kaoru…she has nothing left…no father, no mother, no sisters or brothers…no one. I think you responded to that, unknowingly. In addition, Kaoru asked you to stay, despite your past…with no hidden motive. _**

_Um…that was an out-of-character statement It even sounded like you were THINKING about this. …maybe Sanosuke's right. She could just be visiting Tae-dono…_

**_I still have a bad feeling…but we should wait until sunset, just to be sure. Maybe she really is at the Akabeko… stupid rooster-head._**

In the yard, Sanosuke picked up yet another stick. Drawing his arm back-

'Sanosuke! Don't throw it!'

Sanosuke looked around, puzzled, as Yahiko sprinted over to him and grabbed the stick.

'Um…you like the stick?' he asked, sweatdropping.

'Sanosuke, you baka! Take a closer look!'

Sanosuke took the stick and looked at it. After several minuets of staring at it, he said, 'It's…a stick. Made of wood.'

'It's a shinai!' yelled Yahiko. 'A **broken** shinai.' Kenshin looked up quickly, then hurried over to them and grabbed the wooden stick. After studying it for a moment, he released it.

'It's Kaoru-dono's.' he said.

'Oh, shit.' said Sanosuke.

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'I want you to work for me.' continued the grey-eyed man.

Kaoru glared at him with distaste. 'What makes you think I'd comply?' she spat.

'Because you're in my house. I have any number of men in my service, and you would eventually wear down after fighting such a long time. _Then_ you would be sold into this man's brothel. I think the option that I suggested is rather better, hm?'

Kaoru glared at him, and then straightened up with a scowl. 'If I have no other choice, then fine. I warn you though; I will take every opportunity I get to run away.'

The man stared at her for a few seconds, and then laughed. 'I'd imagine you would.'

Kaoru glared at him. 'What is my job?' she asked, throwing away the sword.

'You will my body-guard…and you must also train my son in sword-arts.'

Kaoru snorted. 'Don't expect me to go easy on him. Where will I stay?'

The man smiled, and then snapped his fingers. A man in a butler's uniform appeared and beckoned to her. She followed at a distance, keeping an eye on the grey-eyed man.

'What is my employer's name?' she asked, over her shoulder.

'Shojo Kazumi.' The man told her, still in the same spot.

'Shojo Kazumi.' she repeated, stepping over one of the prone bodies of the unconscious guard. 'I'll remember.'

'I shouldn't think otherwise.' he muttered as she walked out of the door.

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The next day, Kaoru was woken by loud knocking on her door.

'J'st a few m're min'ts, Ke'shin….' she mumbled, burying her face in a pillow.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

'B'gg'r 'f.'

'Miss…the young master would like to start training now...' an elderly voice quavered.

Kaoru frowned, still half asleep, then, as her memory gradually pulled itself together, she bolted upright. Then groaned. Walking over to the door, she pulled it open slightly to reveal an elderly woman carrying a bundle in her arms. On closer inspection, the bundle turned out to be a white training gi and red hakama..

'Are those for me?' she asked, pointing at them.

The old lady nodded, and then pushed the clothes into her hands. 'Dinner is after the training. I will be outside your door to show you to the training room when you've finished dressing.'

Kaoru raised an eyebrow. 'Dinner? But…isn't it breakfast time?'

'It is five'o'clock in the afternoon, miss. Kazumi-san told me not to wake you.'

After the woman had left, Kaoru slipped on the hakama and gi. The gi was a bit too loose, but, as Kaoru reflected, at least freedom of movement wasn't a problem.

As she opened the door and followed behind the lady, she asked, slightly timidly, 'Um…may I please know your name, ma'am?'

The woman seemed surprised at her politeness, and turned around to look at her. 'Um, yes…my name is Masumau Kagura.'

'I'm pleased to meet you, Masumau-san. My name is Kamiya Kaoru.'

'Pleased to meet you too, Kamiya-san.' the old woman replied, smiling for the first time. Her unusual light-blue eyes twinkled, emphasising the whiteness of her hair.

'Please call me Kaoru-san, Masumau-san. Kamiya san sounds so boring.' Kaoru grinned at her. 'If you don't mind me asking, what is Kazumi-' she paused for a second here. '-san's son like?'

'I am not suitable to give you my opinion…but he is somewhat…you will see soon.'

The old woman stopped outside a door and gestured towards it. 'Inside there, Kaoru-san. There are shinai in the cupboard in the corner. 'Umm…good luck.'

'Thanks.' smiled Kaoru, and then took a deep breath and opened the door.

The room inside was huge, the daylight shining brightly through large windows situated high up on the wall. On the far side of the hall was a young man, leaning casually against the wall. Kaoru shut the door quietly and hesitated, feeling nervous. The man at the end of the hall, however, had opened his eyes at the slight click of the closing door and was now staring at her.

'Who are you?' he asked rudely.

'Kamiya Kaoru.' said Kaoru automaticly. Then she scowled at him, resenting his rudeness.

'What do you want?' he asked, scowling right back at her. 'I'm waiting for my new instructor, and _you_ are in the way.'

'For your information, _I_ am your instructor, you jac-'she stopped her herself just in time.

'You?' asked the man, looking at her in disbelief.

'Yes me!' snapped Kaoru, striding up to the man and glowering up at him.

The man looked exasperated. 'I told my father I wanted to learn swordsmanship and he sends me a stupid _woman!_''

Kaoru clenched her fist, trying to resist the urge to punch the arrogant basterd in front of her on the nose. 'So what if I'm a woman? I bet that I could beat you, you stupid idiot!'

He grinned, then grabbed a shinai that was leaning against the wall. 'You're on, girly.'

Kaoru walked over to the storeroom, opened the door and grabbed a shinai for herself. Returning to opposite the man, she took a defensive stance.

The man eyed her for a moment, smirking condescendingly, and then lunged forward quickly, his shinai aimed at her own. She knocked it aside with a quick flick of her wrist and swung at his side. It connected with a dull thud, and, although Kaoru didn't show it, she was impressed with his lack of reaction. All he did was gasp slightly and jump back, shinai still held steady. He lunged forward again; this time aiming for her left shoulder. She ducked under his attack and hit him again, this time connecting with his other side with a little more power.

'Hnn…' he grunted, doubling over for a second. Kaoru smiled inadvertently at his bowed head, as another, much younger, equally stubborn boy came to mind. As he straightened again, the unconscious smile remained. He surveyed her with suspicion, obviously surprised at the expertise she showed in handling her shinai, and then, carefully this time, ran forward. He swung his stick at her side, and then, as Kaoru moved to block it, instead moved it to aim at her stomach. She grinned at his underhanded tactics, then easily blocked the swing with the hilt of her shinai, twisted to the side and brought it down hard on his head.

'OW! That hurt, woman!' he yelled, dropping the wooden sword and rubbing his temples.

'I'd say your thoroughly beat, boy.' said a loud and obviously amused voice from the sidelines. They both turned, Kaoru jumping slightly, and saw, sitting on a chair against the wall, Kazumi Shojo himself. He got up and walked over to the young man, patting him on the head.

…_what hole in the ground did **he **crawl from? _

'Dad! Did you really have to saddle me with this grumpy girl!' the boy groaned exaggeratedly. Now that Kaoru actually looked at his appearance for the first time, she noticed he really did bear a resemblance to Yahiko…older, taller admittedly, and with light-brown hair, but the expression in his eyes was identical. Pride, strength and…something else… she snapped out of her thoughts in time to hear the conversation.

'Hmm…she's a lot better than you, kid.' Kazumi commented, grinning parentally at his son.

'Ha!' The boy said, glowering at her. 'That was just a fluke.'

'Miss, this is my son, Yekano. Yekano, this is-' he looked at her suddenly. 'I forgot to ask you your name, miss.'

'Kamiya Kaoru.' muttered the girl, glaring at Yekano.

'Right, Kamiya-san.'

The boy sighed, and then rolled his eyes. 'Hello, Kaoru-san.' he muttered.

'Kaoru-SENSEI!' she emphasised, smirking. He simply glowered at her.

'So you will do what you're told, okay, Yekano?' Kazumi told him, staring at him sternly.

'Hmm.' Yekano muttered, folding his arms.

The old man sighed, then turned to Kaoru. 'A suitable kimono will be sent up for you; dinner is at six-thirty sharp.'

_**Eh?**_

'Daaaad! Since when do we eat with the servants?' Yekano whined.

'Kamiya-san is not a servant, Yekano. She is your instructor, and therefore is entitled to eat with us.'

'Fine…but she'll look even more masculine in a kimono.' he muttered, turning and stomping out of the training hall.

'Please come, Kamiya-san.' said Kazumi told her, turning to her briefly and smiling. As he turned and followed his son, she looked after him with narrowed eyes.

_I'm a prisoner, aren't I? _sheasked herself._ So why is he treating me like an honoured guest, left unguarded? And that brat, Yekano! What a spoilt jerk! _After thinking for a second, she grinned evilly to herself._ Ooooh, I can't wait for the next training session! _

She decided to train for a little longer, and, swinging the shinai over and over into thin air. After a while, when she had started to sweat slightly, she deposited her shinai, taking mental note of the Japanese swords standing in the corner, and then opened the door and-

-walked into a dwarf.

'Gaaah!' she yelled, backing away. The dwarf raised its head, revealing itself to be a very old man.

'Hello Yekano-chan!' said the old man, smiling.

'Umm…' said Kaoru, backing away even more.

'You've shrunk.' he remarked, then turned and walked away.

Kaoru stared after him. 'What the…?' she asked herself, sweatdropping. A cough from behind her made her spin around, and Masumau jumped slightly at her sudden movement. The old woman gave her a non-committal smile and gestured for Kaoru to follow her. Stopping finally outside what Kaoru recognised to be as her own new room, the old lady said softly; 'A kimono for dinner is inside. I will be back shortly to escort you to dinner, Kaoru-san.' and then turned and walked away with out another word.

_She's a little cool… _she thought as she entered the room. On her bed was a large parcel.

Opening the paperbound package, she gasped as the rich, opulent fabric of a silken kimono was revealed, even more beautiful that the previous one. Instead of the light, girlish colours that she was used to wearing, the material was a beautiful dark blue. It was embroidered carefully with creamy white lily-like flowers, which were spread across the fabric as if blown by the wind. In the middle of each flower was a golden core, and radiating out from it there were three red threads, standing out vividly against the white. The obi was also white, with graceful spirals traced in gold and silver stitches.

_It, overall, is much too beautiful for…someone like me._

She shook her head to clear it of the sudden, unexpected thought, and grabbed the under-robe that had come with the kimono. As she looked at it for the first time, she bit her lip. The under-robe was a beautiful, light coloured violet colour, a colour very familiar to Kaoru.

'Kenshin…' she whispered under her breath, hugging the fabric to her skin. She sighed, wondering if anyone had noticed that she was gone…and then frowned as she started to contemplate her situation. Why had they kidnapped her in the first place? Did it have something to do with Kenshin? If not, then what?

She scowled as she looked around her room. There were no windows; just an oil lamp hanging on the wall. The door wasn't locked; but she would bet that all of the doors that could possibly lead to an escape-root were. She made a mental note to check that out later. Her only reasonable hope was that either she could fight her way out with those Japanese swords in the storeroom, or that Kenshin would rescue her. She flopped back on the bed as a sudden surge of annoyance flooded through her.

_Am I really so weak? I rely on him this much…what happened to my fighting spirit? Has it disappeared during the last year? I used…to be strong. **By myself**. Without anyone's help. But now…I just sit around waiting for other people to help me, instead of helping myself. When did I become so…totally dependant? _

She sat up, biting her lip hard, and slipped the under-robe on, as well as the kimono and obi. Noticing a small box that she had disregarded before, she opened it carefully. It contained a beautiful black-jewelled hair slide with a ruby centrepiece. Sliding it into her loose hair carefully, she checked her appearance in the mirror hanging over the tiny dressing table. As she smoothed down a few errant strands of hair, someone knocked on the door. Checking her appearance over one last time, she hurried to the door and stepped out, surprising Masumau as she raised her hand to knock again.

'Thank-you, Masumau-san.' she said, smiling. She couldn't help liking the old woman, even in the circumstances she was in now.

'You're welcome. How are you?' the old lady, escorting her to the dining room, looked back for a second.

'I'm fine. Um…do I look okay?' Kaoru asked, stopping momentarily.

The old woman looked at her, and then smiled kindly. 'You look very beautiful, Kaoru-san. Almost like-' suddenly she cut herself off. As Kaoru looked curiously at her, she couldn't help noticing the fleeting expression of shame and grief that flickered over the old lady's features. Biting her lip, she asked 'what's wrong, Masumau-san?'

The old lady turned back to her with a forced smile. 'It doesn't matter, Kaoru-san. We should hurry, otherwise you will be late.' she said, and then hurried off down the corridor. Kaoru followed her at a slightly slower pace, pondering on the half-finished sentence. _I look almost look like who? _She groaned mentally. _Why does everything have to be in riddles?_

Suddenly, she walked headfirst into something. Rubbing her nose gingerly and growling, she glared at the offending object, which turned out to be a very solid mahogany door. Masumau's voice came from beside her.

'Um…that is the dining room door.' she told Kaoru, looking at her questioningly.

Kaoru gave a nervous laugh, thanked her, and cautiously opened the door. Immediately a petulant voice made itself heard.

'Your late, Kaoru.' Yekano huffed, arms crossed. He looked at her critically, then smirked. 'I was right; you do look like a guy.'

THOCK!

'KAORU-_SENSEI!'_

Yekano groaned, rubbing the large bump just above his temple that marked the spot where Kaoru's pegged apple had found its mark. 'Violent she-male.' he growled. Kaoru ignored him, scowling heavily, opting instead to examine the room.

The ceiling was very high, and, like the training hall, the windows were very high. There were only two doors; the one Kaoru had come out of, and one on the opposite side. In the centre of the room was a large table, set for four. She focused on the obscenity-mumbling man in front of her.

'Where's your father?' she asked, wandering over to the sideboard. She quickly wandered away again, after coming face to face with a rather horrible bore's head hanging above it.

'He's late too.' Yekano grumbled. Sighing exasperatedly, he got up, walked over to the sideboard with the boar's head, and opened the door, revealing rows and rows of bottles. Picking up one marked 'Goldwasser' he poured a tiny amount into one of the wine-glasses standing on the dresser.

Kaoru looked at him quizzically. 'Aren't you a little young for drinking?' she asked.

'I'm twenty-two, you know.' he said, smirking at her.

'Really? I thought you were about eighteen.' she told him, glowering up at him, annoyed.

_The damn guy's the same height as Sanosuke!_

Yekano preened a little. 'It must have been my youthful charm that misled you-'

Kaoru cut him off. '-after all, you act like a spoilt brat all the time. It must just be your infantile mentality.'

Yekano choked on his liquor. 'Oi!' he said, glaring at her. Kaoru stifled a snigger and turned her back, just as Kazumi entered the room, escorting the same old man that Kaoru had bumped into earlier that day.

'Sorry I'm late.' he said quietly, escorting the old man to a chair. He turned back, and as Kaoru twisted to face him, his eyes widened momentarily. He stared at her, obviously shocked for some reason, then, as Kaoru looked back at him curiously, he turned to his son.

'You can pour me one to, Yekano.' he said, rubbing his temples and sitting down at the table.

As Yekano gave him his glass and sat down himself, the moustached man gestured for Kaoru to sit as well. She sat, opposite from Yekano, feeling self-conscious. As a maid walked in, carrying a large bowl of soup, she looked at the large array of cutlery with apprehension. Glancing furtively at Yekano, she copied him as he chose a round, flat spoon from the ten or so other implements. She looked at it suspiciously, then dipped it into the green, unappetizing-looking soup. Raising it awkwardly, she sipped the green…_stuff_… To her surprise, it didn't taste all that bad. She kept on eating.

Meanwhile, at the end of the table, Kazumi was stirring his soup repeatedly, eyes blank, obviously deep in his thoughts.

'Hey, Dad, could you pass the salt?' Yekano asked.

'Hnn…' muttered Kazumi. Then he barked; 'What did you say, boy?'

Yekano stared at him questioningly for a second, and then said meekly, 'Nothing.'

'If it's nothing, don't disturb me.' he snapped.

Kaoru stared at him. _He didn't seem like this before…_

He caught her watching him. 'What is it, miss?' he snapped. Kaoru guiltily lowered her gaze to her half-empty soup-bowl. 'I'm sorry…' she mumbled.

Kaoru could feel the tension inside the room thickening. Even the boar head's glassy eyes seemed to be glaring at her contemptuously. It was building…building…building…

'Isn't this steak nice?' asked the old man suddenly. Kaoru jumped at the sudden comment, Kazumi ignored it, and Yekano said resignedly, 'It's soup, grandpa. Spinach soup.'

Kaoru clenched her fists nervously. She searched for something to say that would dispel the rising tension.

'Spinach is nice, don't you think?' she asked, smiling brightly. Inwardly, she cursed herself into a ball of slime.

'Girl.' the voice of Kazumi said in a cold voice from the end of the table. 'Kindly keep your inane remarks to yourself.'

Kaoru narrowed her eyes at his tone. Flushing with anger, she rose out of her chair and said in a coldly civil voice, 'Please forgive me, Kazumi-san. I did not mean to offend you. I think I will go to my…_room…_'she said this last word cynically. 'now.'

Kazumi made no response as Kaoru strode from the room. Once the door had closed behind her, she started to mutter the foulest of the curses she had picked up from Sanosuke, only stopping once she had reached her "room".

Flinging herself down on the bed, she stared up at the ceiling.

_What do you expect anyway, you idiot? You are a **prisoner!**_

She sighed, then started to mutter obscenities under her breath. She sat up angrily and looked around, but there was nothing to throw. She sighed again. So much for anger management…

Someone knocked on the door. Kaoru glared at it. Whoever it was knocked again, louder this time.

'Come in.' she groaned. The door opened slowly and Yekano entered.

Kaoru looked at him with suspicion. 'What are you doing here?' she snarled.

The reply was even more out of character than the visitation. 'I just wanted to apologise for my father.'

Kaoru looked at him warily, then her gaze softened slightly, and she looked at the ceiling. 'Why was he so snappy? Did I say something wrong?'

The young man sighed, and then poked her.

'What NOW!' she yelled.

'Budge over, she-male. I want to sit.'

As he sat, she kicked him off the bed. Literally.

'Oi! What was that for?' he got to his feet again, rubbing his backside.

'Your last comment.'

'Violent grumpy woman.' muttered Yekano. He sat down again, gingerly this time, and eyed her feet warily. 'Are you going to kick me off again, or do you want to know?'

Kaoru looked at him in mock disappointment for a moment. 'You mean I can't do both?'

'NO!'

She sighed. 'It's a tough choice…but tell me why your dad's so upset.'

The young man shifted position. 'Well…I think it's because you look a bit like my sister, Kiore.'

She sat up. 'I haven't seen your sister. Does she live here?' she asked interestedly.

He turned to her, with a curiously neutral expression on his face. 'My sister died fifteen years ago.'

She threw a startled glance in his direction, and then put her hand over his, sympathetic tears coming to her eyes.

'I'm so sorry…' she said.

He looked at her, obviously surprised at her empathy. 'You don't need to be sorry.' he said, impulsively covering her small hand with his own. He then blushed bright red and removed his hand. 'Sorry.' he mumbled.

She grinned at him in amusement, but then her expression became sober. 'If you don't mind me asking…how…?'

Yekano flumped back on the bed. 'No, I don't mind. After all, I was seven at the time…I really don't remember much about her. There was a gunfight when some people attacked the house. Their target was my father, but in the confusion, Kiore…got injured by a stray bullet.' he moodily brushed the bangs on his forehead back out of his eyes.

'My father did everything he could to save her, but she died the next day. I think my father blames himself.'

Kaoru bit her lip, and then said. 'I'm really sorry if I bought up anything painful.'

Yekano looked at her for a second, then grinned. 'Do you know, I think that that's the longest amount of time that we've spent together while not insulting each other?'

Kaoru grinned back. 'You are such a pompous ass. There, does that fix it?'

'…You really need to break that habit you have about spoiling the mood.'

_**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

**_Back in the alleyways of Tokyo… (Finally, after about 3,600 words)_**

'I told you he didn't tell me his name!'

'Are you absolutely certain?' growled Sanosuke. He was holding the unfortunate man up to his face. Considering his height, that meant that the man's feet were dangling about a foot off the ground.

'Yes! Please let me go now!'

Sanosuke glared at him. 'You'd better be tellin' the truth, mister, or I'll find you-' here he released the man. '-and eat-' the man, wide-eyed, let out a whimper and scurried off. '-your DAIKON'S!'

Sanosuke turned to Megumi. 'That's all of them.' he said.

'There must be someone who knows who he was!' she yelled exasperatedly. Sanosuke cringed slightly as she started to advance. 'SANOSUKE!' she screeched. 'THIS IS ALL ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT!'

'Well, well, well…if it isn't the fox-lady attempting to murder the rooster-head.' an impersonal voice commented.

Both Sanosuke and Megumi slowly turned around, Megumi releasing her hold on his throat with obvious reluctance.

Behind them, smoking his customary cigarette and surrounded by his usual cloud of smoke stood Saito, leaning against the alley wall. Catching their expressions, he said, 'Oh, did I interrupt something? But you know, if you want privacy, you really shouldn't…**do stuff** in alleys like this. Anyone could see you.'

Sanosuke and Megumi both blushed a deep red and jumped away from each other.

'Do stuff with this idiot? No chance. I, unlike some, prefer _intelligence_ in a man instead of brawn.' Megumi sniffed, flicking her hair back.

'WHAT? With kitsune here? You must be joking! Jou-chan may like older partners, but I like 'em young. She's way too old for me.'

They glared at each other. '_WHAT _WAS THAT?' they yelled at the same time.

Saito smirked, then coughed to get their attention. When they both glared at him, he raised an eyebrow.

'Sorry to interrupt your "lovers tiff" but I'm going to the Kamiya dojo.' Ignoring the dual screech of 'LOVER'S TIFF!' he turned and started walking, taking a long drag on his cigarette. Behind him, Sanosuke and Megumi glared at one another, and then hurried after the 'Mibu Wolf".

'Oi, Saito! Why're you visiting us?' Sanosuke asked, ignoring the irate woman beside him.

Saito gave him a blank look and flicked away his half-finished cigarette. Ignoring Sanosuke's slowly clenching fist and twitching eye, he stuck another in his mouth and lit it. Finally, after taking a long pull on his second cigarette, he gave the steaming Sanosuke a blank look.

'Why would I tell you?' he asked, raising an eyebrow again.

Sanosuke twitched. 'SAI-TO! I'M GOING TO-'

THOCK!

Megumi lowered her omnipresent medical suitcase and glared at the now-prostrate young man.

'You idiot, that was a taunt!' she growled. Turning to Saito, she asked, 'Have you come to see Ken-san?'

Saito glanced at her briefly. 'I repeat; why would I tell you?'

Megumi's eyebrow started to twitch uncontrollably. '**WHAT?**! SAITO HAJIME, I AM GOING T-' Sanosuke, **miraculously** recovered, glowered at the smirking Saito as he held the enraged woman back.

'Let me GO, Rooster-head!'

'He's MINE to kill, Kitsune!'

Saito looked at both of them, and removed the cigarette for a second. 'Idiots.' he muttered, exhaling a large plume of smoke.

**_----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _**

'Amazing. You're even stupider that I thought.' Saito commented, stubbing out his fourth cigarette on his boot. He lit another instantly.

Sanosuke glowered at him. Kenshin, meanwhile, was staring at something in his hand. Yahiko caught sight of a blue gleam, and leaned forward curiously. However, before he could catch a peek of whatever was in the red-head's hand, he closed it and dropped whatever it was into the sleeve of his gi.

'Did Moustache-glasses know anything, Kenshin?' asked Sanosuke, producing a fish-bone and starting to chew. Catching Saito's look, he said defensively, 'You've got your cigarettes; I've got my trusty fish-bone. What's wrong with that?'

'Maybe it's the fact that that disgusting…_thing_ that might, once, have belonged to a fish is turning green.' Megumi asserted, sipping her tea with a disgusted face.

'No, Uramura-san didn't. There haven't been any unusual incidents, no reported kidnappings…nothing.' Kenshin's voice was surprisingly calm.

Sanosuke, meanwhile, was looking at Saito critically. 'Saito…would you be able to find out?'

'Probably.' he said casually, blowing out yet another stream of smoke.

'Will you do me this one favour?' asked Sanosuke pleadingly. 'I'll do anything.'

Saito paused, mid-inhalation, and smirked. '…Anything?' he asked, turning his head slightly to look at the young man out of the corner of his eye.

'Anything.' confirmed Sanosuke.

Saito's smirk grew wider, and he twisted the cigarette between his fingers. 'Very well then…I would be willing to help you if-'

**_-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_**

As Doctor Gensai passed the Kamiya dojo he smiled, thinking how **wonderful** spring was. The warm sun, the gentle breeze, the silence in the air, and, except for the chirping of tiny birds, the overall peace and serenity-

'**EXCEPT THAT!' **roared a very familiar voice, startling the little birds and fracturing the silence into tiny, irretrievable pieces.

Gensai sighed and continued on his way, mentally making a note to himself to give Megumi-san the powerful new sedative he had received in the mail. She had asked for an extra-large bottle. Doctor Gensai wondered why.

**_----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- _**

Sorry about this chapter, I don't think its good, but I just fell off my trampoline. I managed to hook my legs around the frame in time so I didn't whack my head but my whole upper back is black, blue and purple, with an interestingly colourful graze. This is slightly hampering my good mood. However, I suppose I should be grateful that I didn't get another concussion. That would have made it double figures.

**Review responses! **WOW…so many already…I'm stoked! Do you know there's been 149 hits to this page!

**Flip-flop108**: Hahahaha…to tell you the truth, I really didn't even expect to get ONE! Yay! So proud –sniff- I'm so glad you actually want me to update! P.S. Nice name, I love it! Thankyou for your review!

**Jasmine blossom625: **Heheh…THANKYOU SO MUCH! I like reading fictions in which Kaoru isn't the "damsel in distress" all the time. I like the other sorts too, lots, but sometimes it can just be so tiring when Kenshin saves the day by himself. I just don't think that Kaoru would be that sorta girl!

**Arwey**: Thanks so much! I'm so happy you liked it! This is my favourite story that I'm writing at the moment…mainly because the plot is FAIRLY original… (I think… it came out of my own head, anyway!) But I enjoy torturing Sanosuke! Who doesn't? P.S. The guy who is the voice actor for Sanosuke in the English-dubbed version is called Lex Lang. Did you know that 'Lang' means 'long' in German? –Sniggers-- Nice name, ne?

**flaming-amber****; --**_groans_--since I am a complete moron, I had to look up tangent. THANK GOD FOR DICTIONARIES! Yes, I have never been good with fighting scenes…I'm a sort-of pacifist…except when I lose my temper…as annoying guys have found out! –evil smirk- yes it did get off track a bit…then again, my brain is so scrambled that I'm surprised I managed to get down anything coherent at all! How do you like this punishment? …but please tell me what you think! I not quite sure if you liked this, but I hope you do! Thankyou for reviewing!

**Jade Lotus; **Thanks for your review! It made me so happy that you enjoyed it! I really like writing, but I constantly worry if it is…well, frankly, just plain craptacular…THANKYOU! I made you laugh? I AM HAPPY! Next chappie…up! Hope you like it!

Thankyou so much to everyone who reviewed! Wow, I got eight exclamation marks! It really, really means a lot to me. I will continue to answer reviews individually, if you want, that is. Oh, and can you load pictures onto your profile page? I just wanted to know, because I drew a picture of the Kenshingumi's reactions on reading my story, just for fun…its not very good, but I think It's how they would react!

**Mayu; God no!** Don't tell her! It's a terrible, terrible picture! –looks at Kaiju- Okay, so you got five reviews. It was probably a fluke. I'd bet anything that you can't get another five!

**Kaiju;** -evil smirk- _Anything?_

**Mayu;** Yup!

**Kaiju; --c**ackle—you heard the guy! Everyone, the two-review rule stands. Two reviews and I shall continue!

And what's a Mary-sue, a MPD and a sped?

P.S. Apparently, someone was hitting on me the other day. O.o I didn't notice tho, so don't expect heaps of mush from me, the naturally idiotic and oblivious one. However, I am a romantiac, so expect a little…

I've just realized that there is virtually no Kenshin or Yahiko in this story. SORRY! Next chappie there'll be more, promise! So what do you think I should make Saito make Sano do? I do have an idea, but I'm really open to suggestions!

**Mayu;** I've got one!

**Me; **--stuffs large red stress-ball into his mouth-- **I know you do**. Not **_that_** sort of suggestion! **T.T** Alright, this isn't a funny chapter, it's just to get the basics down.

**Next chapter I promise there shall be Saito-bashing! YAY! By the way, are there any other characters you would like in this fic? Like Aoshi, or Misao maybe?**

**Oh, and does anyone know if Shura appears in the manga? I haven't got volume six or seven. Oh, and who is Kurogasa? I have really bad memory… I've read the name a few times tho, and its driving me nutso!**

I really, sincerely hope Nobuhiro Watsuki-sama never reads this…


	3. Chapter 3

Hiya! Me again. Happy you're reading the third chapter.

Sorry for the extra three-day delay, to any people I said to that I was going to update on Friday. I got delayed because I got sick. –punches self in head—stupid me. Also, I have a giant case of writers block.

Its HUGE! Really! So this chapter might not be funny or make sense…

YAY! Three more reviews! THANKYOU!

I just wanted to raise a point here. In Sapphire Wolf's "Undercover Geisha." (which is, by the way, excellent!) she raised the very interesting topic of Kaoru's past. Unlike the other Kenshingumi, there's really very little of it in either the manga or the anime. I really wonder what it was? The story's on Fan fiction all differ.

Now that that worthless piece of craptacular speculation is out of my fluff-ball filled mind, ON WITH THE STORY!

**DISCLAIMER. **I have no beard. If I ever grow one, feel free to sue me for it.

**Warnings; **My strange and demented sense of humour, innuendo, OOCness's, cigarette-less Saito, and Sanosuke in a pink apron. Oh, and shitake mushrooms. –grin--

Hamsters beware, there be daikons abroad…Yes, that was extremely pointless.

By the way, does anyone else really enjoy the R.K. outtakes? I really love the outtakes in volume 16. It just made me crack up. As I said, I have a strange sense of humour.

_**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

Sanosuke stared at Saito. Saito smirked at Sanosuke. Sanosuke whimpered. Saito smirked.

'Oh ALL RIGHT!' yelled Sanosuke.

Saito smirked.

**_----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_**

Kenshin was in his room, inwardly seething.

_Why is Saito being so difficult?_

…**_Because he enjoys it, housemaid. Why else?_**

Ignoring the housemaid comment, Kenshin brushed his bangs out of his eyes. _This is so frustrating! Why can't Saito hurry up?_

**_He has to find the people first, baka… I'm going to strangle Sanosuke. Any objections? _**

_Not many…_

_**Good.**_

Kenshin sighed. _It's going to be a long night…_

_**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**The next morning…_

'Found her.' said Saito calmly.

Kenshin and Sanosuke stared at him, then at each other.

'YES!' they yelled simultaneously.

Saito smirked, and then coughed to get their attention. He looked at Sanosuke. 'Now comes your part of the agreement.'

Sanosuke started to sweat slightly. 'Isn't there anything else-'

'No.' Saito cut him off.

'Where am I going to get something like that?' complained Sanosuke, grimacing.

Saito raised an eyebrow patronizingly. 'Well, I thought you might not be able to…so I came prepared.'

Sanosuke blanched as the tall, still smoking man rummaged around in the bag at his side. 'Oh Kami…' he muttered.

Saito pulled out the object. It was an apron. A pink apron. A pink apron with lace. And frills. And a white bunny in one corner.

It was…_horrible…_

Saito held it out to Sanosuke, who backed away. As his back came in contact with the wall, he moaned, 'Oh no…'

Saito advanced, a sadistic smirk engraved on his face.

'**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH**! Kenshin, **HELP ME**!'

_**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

An hour later…

'You look absolutely be-a-utiful!' smirked Yahiko. He was standing in the corner, grinning at the now-depressed ex-fighter-for-hire.

Sanosuke raised his head slowly and glared at the boy.

Yahiko grinned nervously and went to hide behind Kenshin, who was looking at Saito. Saito exhaled a cloud of smoke.

'What information do you have about Kaoru-dono's whereabouts?' Kenshin asked the yellow-eyed man.

After taking yet another mouthful of smoke, Saito stubbed the cigarette out, then sat down on one of the cushions opposite the red-headed swordsman.

'One of my contacts is an associate of a man named Notoa Aka. This man, Notoa, was in Nagoya on business three days ago to buy a woman from the local oyabun, Shojo Kazumi.'

Kenshin swore inwardly. 'What does this… Notoa do with the women he buys?'

'He sells them in brothels.' Saito said matter-of-factly.

Sanosuke was the first one to unfreeze. 'When I get to Nagoya, I am going to **find** Notoa, **rip** off his **head**, and **SHOVE IT**-'

'THAT UTTER BASTERD!' yelled Yahiko.

Kenshin had bolted up, clutching his sheath so hard that it cut off the blood supply to his hands, and started for the door.

Saito interrupted. 'The transaction failed.' he said quietly.

Everyone froze again.

'What?' asked Sanosuke, turning back around.

'Why?' asked Kenshin.

'YEAH!' yelled Yahiko.

'Apparently, he thought that she was too violent.' Saito replied easily, smirking slightly.

Yahiko snorted.

'What did Jou-chan do?' asked Sanosuke. He slumped against the wall and whipped out his fishbone.

Saito lit another cigarette. 'He said that she had beaten up Shojo's bodyguards. Quite badly, in fact.'

Yahiko sniggered. 'I'll bet.'

The smile vanished from his face with Saito's next comment.

'But we don't know how long that's going to last.'

'We have to find her.' said Sanosuke. He looked at Saito. 'Are you going to help?'

'I have nothing better to do…' the wolf-like man drawled. He rose, brushing non-existent lint off his jacket, and then started towards the open door. Looking back for an instant, he said, 'I've arranged tickets to Nagoya on a boat called "Das Kleiner Blau Mause". It leave's port in-' he checked his watch. '-two hours, I believe. I will be back here in one-and-a-half hours with a carriage. Be ready.' Then he left.

Kenshin, Sanosuke and Yahiko looked at each other. After a few minuets, Megumi walked in.

'What was that wolf-man doing here? Has he found Kaoru yet?'

'Megumi, have you got your medical supplies?' asked Sanosuke suddenly.

Megumi raised an eyebrow, then pointed to the suitcase in her hand. 'Yeeeees…?'

Sanosuke turned back to the other two. 'Lets get packing.' he said simply.

Kenshin and Yahiko nodded, then ran out. Megumi eyed Sanosuke questioningly.

'Okay; one, what's going on, and two;…why are you wearing that horrible thing?' she pointed to his apron.

Sanosuke sighed. 'Okay, sit down and I'll explain.'

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **_

One hour and fifty-three minuets later…

Kenshin, Sanosuke, Yahiko, Saito and Megumi made their way up the gangplank, Saito looking even more irritated that usual and Sanosuke plucking disgustedly at the pink lace.

'AHOOOOOOOOOY!' bellowed a deep voice, making everyone except for Saito jump.

'AAAAAAAHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOY!' the cry was repeated. As they crested the walkway, they saw who the yell had come from. Standing on a large wooden box on the middle of the deck was a figure all but lost in a humungous woollen sweater. On closer inspection, the figure proved to be male. Almost certainly. He also appeared to be steaming.

The person jumped off the box, landing agilely on the deck, and then walked towards the group. As he got nearer, and finally stopped in front of them, it became apparent that he was smoking a pipe. Almost definitely not steaming. He was also just tall enough to reach Sanosuke's navel.

The little man glared at them from under grizzled white brows and his blue cap.

''Urry up then!' he yelled, gesturing.

'Um…where?' asked Sanosuke, raising an eyebrow. The old man looked at him, frowning. 'Where what?'

'The cabins.' said Megumi impatiently. She was carrying her medical case, and it was obvious that she was restraining herself with difficulty from hitting the old man in front of her with it. Hard.

The old man snapped his fingers and grinned widely. 'Oh, yes!'

After waiting a few minuets for the man to move, Sanosuke said, 'Well, where are they?'

'Where're what?' asked the old man, looking mystified. Sanosuke twitched.

Saito raised an eyebrow and Sanosuke started to twitch uncontrollably.

'The cabins.' said Kenshin, somewhat more patiently than Megumi.

'Oh, the cabins!' exclaimed the old man, turning around and walking towards the aft of the ship. 'Should'a said so, sonny!'

They followed him hopefully, and when he stopped at the side of the ship, they looked around optimistically.

The man noticed them behind him. 'What are you all following me for?' he asked, blowing a smoke-ring.

'I…can not…take this.' said Sanosuke calmly.

'I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!' yelled Megumi not-so-calmly. 'YOU B-'

'Excuse me.' said a tentative voice, interrupting Megumi's scream.

Everyone turned around, and the man flinched slightly as his eyes went from Saito's sour expression to Megumi's clenched fists, then to Sanosuke's wildly twitching eyebrow and his pink, lacy apron.

'Are you looking for something?' he asked nervously, backing away slightly.

Kenshin stepped in front of the others before they collectively tried to strangle the man. 'Could you please direct us to the cabins?'

The man looked relieved and pointed towards a small trapdoor. 'Down there and to the right.' he said.

Megumi scowled at him, then jerked her thumb at the old man behind her, who was now singing. 'You should get the captain to throw that stupid overboard!'

The sailor looked at the man, then looked at Megumi. 'Um…that _is_ the captain, miss.'

Everyone stared at the sailor expressionlessly. Then, in unison, they turned to Saito.

'Is this the only boat you could get tickets to? A rundown, tatty thing with a crazy captain?' asked Megumi.

'So much for your "contacts".' muttered Yahiko, glaring at the tall man.

'It's the only ship that's bound for Nagoya, so stop whining.' Saito scowled.

Megumi glowered at him, then turned to the sailor, who was watching the group warily.

'**Please** lead us to our cabins.' she said. The young man, after taking a look at her expression, hurriedly complied.

As they followed the man down the trapdoor and across the corridor, Kenshin was frowning to himself.

_The sky is clouding over. Sessha thinks that there is going to be a storm before long. _he sighed. _It is good that sessha does not get seasick._

Inside of his head, the Battousai squinted. **_YOU don't…but what about Yahiko, Megumi and Sanosuke?_**

_Not Saito?_

**_I really can't imagine that. But Yahiko's gonna be puking everywhere…_**

_Maybe Megumi-dono has something for seasickness…at least, I hope so… _

As they stopped in the middle of a corridor, a door on either side, the sailor gestured towards each one.

'This is the ladies room, and this is the gents. If you need anything, just ask the nearest of the staff.'

'Thanks man.' said Sanosuke, patting him on the head. As the three men started to enter their room, the sailor tapped Kenshin politely on the shoulder. When he turned to look at him, the sailor grinned sheepishly.

'Miss, the female room is that way.' he said, pointing to the door opposite.

Kenshin stared at him. 'Um…' he said.

Sanosuke smirked, then pointed at Kenshin. 'This guy is a guy.' he said simply.

The sailor stared at the two, then flushed, bowing. 'Uh…sorry 'bout that. It just your hair…' he tried again. 'your gi…um…'

Kenshin sighed. 'It is fine.' he mumbled. Then he stiffened as an arm snuck around his waist. Megumi, anthropomorphic fox ears popping up on her head, grinned seductively at him.

'Oro!'

'Oh, _I _don't mind if Ken-san shares my quarters.' she purred, snuggling up against him. 'No…I don't mind at all…'

Sanosuke glared at her. 'KITSUNE!' he growled.

She looked at him archly. 'Yes, rooster-head? Don't tell me you're jealous! Ohohohoho!'

'Can…you…please let…go, Megumi-dono? …Can't…breath…'

'Oops!' she said, releasing him quickly. Kenshin gingerly massaged his neck, and as Megumi started to edge towards him again, he quickly hid behind Sanosuke.

Saito frowned.

_**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

_The next day…_

Saito was at the prow, staring at the sky, which was steadily growing darker with the approaching storm clouds. Suddenly, a dark-haired woman in a forest-green kimono bashed into him, knocking him against the railing. As he straightened up, glowering at the woman, she bowed apologetically, then started away.

Saito frowned. The day was turning out even worse that he had expected.

_I need a cigarette. _

Saito patted his breast-pocket for his cigarette box. Then his pants pocket. Finally, he searched in the pocket attached to his belt.

Nothing.

He systematically searched through all of the pockets again.

Zilch.

He closed his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. He frowned. Then opened them again.

'Damn.'

He scanned the deck for the comforting rectangular packet, but found none.

_No cigarettes…_

He walked calmly down to his quarters and sat on his bed and stared off into space.

Kenshin, who was sitting in the corner, stared at him.

_Does Saito ever smile?_ he wondered.

_**That is an interesting point. Why don't you ask him?**_

Kenshin looked at the tall man again. _Sessha does not think that sessha wants to know anymore…_

_**Chicken.**_

_Maybe YOU would like to ask him?_

…**_no._**

_Sessha repeats your quote; 'chicken.'_

_**Oh, shut up housemaid.**_

_Sessha is not a housemaid!_

_**Yes you are.**_

_No sessha is not!_

**_You even argue like a girl. I swear, if I wasn't in your head, I'd think you were gay._**

_Oro! What's that supposed to mean!_

_**Well, you dress in pink-**_

_-MAGENTA!_

_**-You enjoy washing-**_

_-It is very relaxing!_

_**-You cook better that Tae, even-**_

_-Sessha enjoys cooking!_

_**-Not to mention your appearance.**_

_What's wrong with sessha's appearance! _

_**You look like a girl. All that long, red hair-**_

_Sessha likes sessha's hair! Besides, you look the same!_

…**_I'll give you a point there. But I have masculine eyes._**

_So does sessha!_

_**Do not.**_

_Do so!_

_**As I said, you argue like a housemaid.**_

_You are really very annoying._

**_Awww, but if I left, you know you'd miss me._**

_Why don't you leave so that sessha can find out?_

_**How rude!**_

Kenshin sighed, then drew his sakabatto and started to polish it, for want of anything better to do, his mind filled with thoughts of a certain sapphire-eyed assistant-master.

_Sessha hopes that she is safe…_

_**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

Yahiko was hanging over the side of the boat, retching. As he straightened up, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand, his gaze landed on the steadily converging clouds. They were dark and threatening, and in the distance, he could see small flashes of lightning, accompanied by the faint rumble of thunder. He squinted, trying to gauge the distance of the oncoming storm, but gave up when the boat lurched violently, his stomach mirroring the movement seconds later.

As the ship rocked to one side again, Yahiko became vaguely aware of two people, one on either side, both …occupied in the same manner that he was.

The trio straightened up as one, and regarded each other.

'Sanosuke!' said Yahiko. 'I didn't know you got seasick.'

Sanosuke, however, was staring impassively at the person over Yahiko's head.

Yahiko turned. He also began to stare.

Saito glared back. 'What?' he snapped.

'Saito…seasick…' murmured Yahiko. He started to stagger back to the cabins. 'All that leaning overboard must have made the blood rush to my head and I'm just hallucinating… just hallucinating.'

Sanosuke pinched himself, then, satisfied that he wasn't dreaming, smirked condescendingly. 'So…you get seasick.'

Saito growled. 'If I had my cigarettes, this wouldn't be happening!'

Sanosuke raised an eyebrow at the out-of-character reaction. 'You lost your cigarettes?'

Saito didn't bother answering, instead choosing to scowl heavily at him and then follow Yahiko down to the rooms.

Sanosuke's grin disappeared as the ship rocked again, making his stomach churn.

'Rooster-head; what are you doing?' asked Megumi's voice from behind him.

'Being horribly sick.' he groaned. 'Just like Chibi-suke and Wolf-man.'

Behind him, Megumi began to smirk as an idea presented itself to her. Fighting to keep her voice free of amusement, she said, 'Come to my room. Tell the other two to come as well. I'll see if I can find anything to help you three idiots.'

Sanosuke smiled, his back still towards her. _So the fox **does** care after all!_

'Thanks Megumi. We'll be down in a second.'

Megumi stifled an evil snigger. 'I certainly hope so.'

_**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

Megumi had to use every ounce of self-control she possessed not to smirk as she surveyed the two men and one boy in front of her.

She dug around in her case, and came up holding two shitake mushrooms.

The three men stared at them in unison.

'Megumi, we wanted something to cure seasickness, not _cause_ it.' said Yahiko.

'Precisely. Shitake mushrooms are known to cure seasickness.' Megumi told them.

'Megumi-dono…aren't shitake mushrooms for-' interjected Kenshin.

Megumi interrupted him. '-for seasickness, yes! Really, Ken-san, you must try to keep up with the conversation!'

Kenshin gave up, defeated. 'Oro…'

'What do we gotta do with them, eat them?' moaned Sanosuke.

Megumi allowed herself a bright smile. 'No. You simply stick one in each ear.' she demonstrated by jamming one into Sanosuke's.

'WHAT? No WAY!' yelled Sanosuke and Yahiko, the former pulling the mushroom out hurriedly and the latter grimacing. Saito merely glared.

'Suit yourself, but I have no other cure available.' she told them, turning back to her supplies.

'We don't need it!' said Yahiko, walking towards the door, with Sanosuke following. The had just reached the door-handle when a particularly violent surge took place, making almost everyone stagger.

Yahiko, Sanosuke and Saito went green.

'Give me the mushrooms!' yelled Yahiko, staggering towards the doctor.

Megumi smirked again, and then pulled out four more mushrooms.

'Here you are. Be sure to jam them right in! Ohohohohohohoho!'

_**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

Saito was lying on his bed. The shitake mushrooms weren't helping. The ship was barrelling horribly. The tap was dripping.

**Drip.**

Saito twitched ever so slightly.

_Damn I need some cigarettes. _he thought.

The ship rocked again.

He groaned.

**Drip**.

He twitched again.

_I really need my cigarettes. Then everything would be fine._

The floor lurched as the ship crested another wave.

**Drip.**

Twitch.

Rock.

_precious cigarettes…_

**Drip.**

Twitch.

Rock.

_precious…my precious cigarettes…_

**Drip.**

_Twitch. _

**Rock.**

_**Dri-**_

'AAAAAAAGGGGHHHHHHRRRRR!' bellowed Saito, bolting upright. He grabbed his wakizashi from the bedside table and ran over to the tap, beating it into the off position with the hilt.

_Cigarettes…_

His eyes landed on Sanosuke, who was watching him and sweatdropping. He walked towards him, smirking in an evil sort of a way.

'Do you have any cigarettes?' he asked.

Sanosuke eyed his unsheathed sword with trepidation. 'Umm…no, but Kenshin might have some.' he said slowly.

Saito straightened, and then looked around for Kenshin. He wasn't there, so, sword still drawn, he climbed up out of the trapdoor. As he spotted a glimpse of red-hair, he smirked, then walked over to him.

'Cigarettes?' he asked incoherently.

Kenshin looked at him with apprehension.

_He looks bad._

_**He looks scary...like a zombie! I suggest you run. Fast. Away.**_

_Where would sessha run? This is a boat, and I'm not all that good at swimming._

**_Anywhere! Or do something! Aaaggghhh! He's coming! RUN FOR OUR LIVES!_**

Kenshin backed away slightly, trying to ignore the Battousai as he yelled advice on various ways to kill zombies.

**_You need sea-salt and pepper! Or you could cut off his head and stick a lemon in his mouth, that works for vampires! He's coming! Run away run away run away- _**

'Ummm...I have no cigarettes...but...I'll just go and...ask the captain!'

Kenshin hurried over to the captain, Saito following close behind.

'Um, Mr. Captain person, do you have any cigarettes?' he asked urgently.

The captain regarded him haughtily, blowing thick, evil-smelling smoke from his pipe. 'Never had a cigarette, never will! Foul muck they are, boyo, mess up your lungs su'mat real bad. A man's pipe is his best friend, yes sir'ee!'

Kenshin grimaced. then looked puzzled as he saw the captains expression change from slightly crazed joviality to horror.

He turned around, just in time to see Saito looming up behing him, clutching his sword. In one sudden motion, Saito snatched at the captains pipe, then, as the captain dodged the clumsy lunge, the tall yellow-eyed police-man fell on top of Kenshin.

'ORO!' said Kenshin from underneath Saito.

'Must...have...cigarettes...!' Saito said, grabbing the captains ankles.

'My pipe!' yelled the captain as he overbalanced and dropped the said item.

There was the sound of porcilin breaking.

_**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

'Well...' said Sanosuke. 'Whoever would have known that the old man was so attached to his pipe.'

Megumi scowled at him, then turned and scowled at Saito, who was slumped on the floor of the small row-boat.

'Oro...' said Kenshin, still slightly dazed.

'Stupid Saito...stupid cigarettes...stupid captain...' mumbled Yahiko. Then he went green and leaned over the side again, shitake mushrooms still stuck in ears.

'Well... it could have been worse!' said Sanosuke, trying to lighten the mood.

Everyone swivled to look at him, exept for Saito, who was still unconcious after being hit with a large stone-fish by Sanosuke.

'Worse than being stuck thirty miles out to sea from the nearest port without any paddles in an undersize boat? How?' said Megumi icily.

Sanosuke considered for a moment. 'We...we could all be naked!' he exclaimed finaly.

'Sanosuke...' said Megumi, as sweet as arsenic.

'Yeah?'

'Get overboard and start paddling!'

SPLASH!

'OI!'

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **_

Kenshin smiled down at her, the warm summer breeze blowing his bangs across his violet eyes. Kaoru smiled back, blushing slightly, and then looked across the sand-dunes to the beautiful multicoloured sunset.

The sky mirrored the light purple colour of his eyes, changing to a vivid orange and then to crimson at the horizon. The warm wind caressed her face, blowing her long midnight locks over her face. She turned back to the red-headed swordsman behind her, and blushed slightly as she saw that his face was mere inches away from hers. Meeting his gentle violet eyes, she leaned forward slightly and closed her eyes. She could feel his breath on her lips, and, as she parted her lips slightly, he said,

'Wake up Kaoru, you violent she-male.'

She opened her eyes, then, meeting the engaging gaze of the rurouni, she dismissed it as her imagination. She closed her eyes again, and this time, he poked her.

'Kenshin?' she asked.

He looked at her lovingly, and said, 'Oi! You lazy idiot! Upski!'

Kaoru's eyelids fluttered, then, as he poked her again, she sat upright suddenly, her forehead immediately coming into contact with something hard.

'OW!' she screeched, rubbing the bridge of her nose gingerly. Opening her eyes blearily, she encountered the grouchy gaze of Yekano, who was also holding his head. Which meant…

_It was a dream…_

She glowered at Yekano, who either didn't notice or didn't care. He rolled his eyes at her exasperatedly.

'You're so lazy! What do you need, sixteen hours of sleep before you become fully functional?'

'Asswipe…' she muttered, pulling her covers off.

He grinned at her suddenly, then poked her again. 'You really aren't a morning person, are you?'

In response, Kaoru cuffed him lightly around the head. 'No.'

'Violent grumpy woman.' he muttered loudly.

'What are you doing in here anyway? Its too early for training…'

Yekano shrugged casually. 'I was bored.'

WHACK!

THUMP!

'You disturbed my beauty sleep…because you were _bored!_' she growled, rubbing her now-sore knuckles.

From his new position on the floor, Yekano scowled up at her. 'You certainly need it!'

Kaoru narrowed her eyes. 'I beg your pardon?'

Yekano suddenly became aware of his rapidly impending doom. 'Ah…what I mean is…um….'

'TOO LATE!'

WHACK!

'OOOWWW!'

**_----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_**

'Two hundred more strikes!' yelled Kaoru, pointing her shinai at her sweating student.

'What!' Yekano yelled, straightening up and eyeing her with disbelief.

'You heard me!' she growled. 'If you want to become stronger, stop whining and get on with it.'

'I'm not whining!' he panted, starting the exercise. 'I just--think its-- rather excessive.'

'I know an eleven-year-old that could beat you into a pulp!'

'So what? He probably started earlier!'

'Listen, you! You have potential, but unless you stop mucking around, you wont be able to be any stronger at all! You said you wanted to learn the Kamiya Kasshin style...so concentrate!'

'I dont want to learn it!' yelled Yekano, throwing the wooden sword to the floor. He sneered. 'Its a stupid style anyway! What's the point of not killing your enemies?'

Kaoru gritted her teeth, then also threw her sword down. 'That IS the whole point, to save lives using swords!'

'I think its really idiotic. Swords are to kill people with; thats their original design and thats what they're used for. The creator must have been really stupid-'

SLAP!

Kaoru lowered her hand. Yekano stared at her, taking in her over-bright eyes and red face. With out another word she spun and started to sprint away towards the door. Yekano raced after her, catching her by the wrist.

'Kaoru, I'm really sorry-'

He was cut short as she turned to face him, tears running down her face. She raised her hand and slapped him again, then wrenched her wrist out of his grip.

He watched, stunned at her sorrow, as she ran out of the training hall.

He raised his hand to his cheek and winced; not from the pain, but from the raw emotions that he had seen in the young girls eyes.

'Shit...' he cursed, and then hurriedly followed her.

_**---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **_

Sorry, this chapter is fairly boring, random and pointless. :bows: Sorry! --;

It strikes me that two of my friends are very similar to Sanosuke and Yahiko. Roly is tall, lanky, but strong with brown puppy-dog eyes and spiky dark brown hair. He continually drinks and gambles, and…isn't exactly the **shiniest** button on the metaphorical coat. He even fits the age, if we look four or five years in the future from the anime series; he's 24. Mijan, the next door guy, also fits the age. He is 15, and also has spiky hair and brown eyes. He has a quick temper, but is also kind. He makes rude remarks to hide his true feelings, but he does say nice things…_occasionally_…

I just got bit by a goat. Oh, the delights of living next to an insane German engineer/goat-herder. Animals seem to like my taste. Just like inanimate objects are attracted to my shins or to under my feet.

As I was saying, animals like to bite me. I have been bitten by a horse, a goat, a camel, a lizard or two, a peacock, a crab, a mouse, a bat, a Smiggete…oh, and a eastern hairy-nose wombat. I think I am one of the only people in the world who has been bitten by one of those things. Believe you me, they may **LOOK** cute and cuddly, but they're **_evil_**…of course, my opinion may be ever so slightly bias.

On the subject of animals; what's with the animal-rights activists who rally all day and then go home to a big, juicy steak? Surely it's the animals right not to be eaten. I just don't get them. Sorry about that, that was just bugging me majorly.

**Review responses!**

**Jasmine blossom625**-snickersdon't we all just love Saito bashing? I cant think of a more entertaining pastime! WOW! You reviewed a second time! I am REALLY, TRULY STOKED! And its the second time you said my story was great too! THANKYOU!

**flip-flop108**-mimics meditation pose Heheh, I WISH! Awww… Shura doesn't appear in the manga:C…

Thanks for telling me tho! I'm glad that you like this story! Your review was really encouraging, in fact, its what made me update! Thankyou so MUCH! So you're a Veg too? This is a weird coincidence! Oh, and thankyou so very, very much for putting me on your favourite authors list! sniff I feel so privileged… bows repeatedly Thankyou for your second review!

**WOW!** No flames yet? I'm surprised…but grateful. If you do want to flame me tho, I promise I wont get mad…I have heaps to learn, I know that…

You know how I said that I had gotten 149 hits? Well, from Monday to now…I have had 310 more hits. WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW! 459 hits! So happy!—sniff—

If anyone would like to read pure, hilarious randomness, look up "Say Cheese!" by Higurete Michi Toushi.

I laughed almost the whole time. 

If anyone knows of any really good stories or if you would like me to R'n'R yours, please tell me! I really like reading people's fan fictions! Oh, and advice and suggestions are greatly appreciated!

By the way, the ships name means 'the small blue mouse.'

And its supposed to help headaches if you stuff shitake mushrooms in your ears. Really, it is. -–strokes imaginary goatee—Maybe I should try it some time.

**Ciao, **

**Kaiju…**

**+ Mayu, who I have stuffed in the toaster in a complicated scientific experiment.**

See the little button down there? Your so close…!

**IIIIIIIIII**

**IIIIIIIIII**

**IIIIIIIIII**

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII** Follow the arrow!

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII** Clicky clicky!

**IIIIIIIIIIIIIII** You want to review! You do, you do!

**IIIIIIIIIII** If there's no reviews, no more chapters! And then I shall **SULK!**

**IIIIIII** You don't want that!

**IIIII** **….**

**II** …Do you?


	4. Chapter 4 the crapist i have ever wrote

**Dicing with Death**

-chapter four-

**By Kaiju**

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Yay! My fourth chapter…--sniffs—who would'a thunk? V TT V

I just realised that Tokyo and Kyoto are anagrams of each other.

Disclaimer; Ich weiss nicht...varoom?

Varoom, Varoom, Varoom;

Ist die banana krum?

People are saying they like the story! I'm glad. **I _finally_ worked out how to enable anonymous reviews, thanks to Winter-dragon! THANKYOU! I LOVE YOU! (platonically) :glomps Winter-dragon:**

**Mayu-the-Toaster;** What's with you and spouting random German words?

**Me;** Ummmm…:ponders: dunno.

**Mayu-the-Toaster;** :sweatdrops: You're strange.

**Me;** Well, _duh_…why else would I be writing this story? T-T ?

**Mayu-the-Toaster; **Point taken.

Oh! everyone! I looked up Richard Hayworth (also known as Richard Casino), the voice actor who plays Kenshin, and an entry on wikapedia said that he is…53! GOD! And he has such a great voice, too! He doesn't SOUND that old…does he!

Do you know how many hits I've got?

900 on the dot.

I am absolutely thrilled…but why didn't they leave a review…:sniff:

Warnings; **THIS CHAPTER IS CRAPPY! **I just can't concentrate for some reason…I just got my first job though, and im more than a little distracted…I mean, I tried to brush my teeth with suntan lotion! It tasted HORRIBLE! DO _NOT_ do that! I also got a migraine…but it wasn't too bad, thank god! Do you know what they do at the hospital if you get a really bad one?

THEY STICK A **GIGANTIC NEEDLE **INTO YOUR** _BUTT_!**

---_ahem_---

READ ONWARDS!

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**Mayu-the-Toaster; **Read the story!

**Mayu-the-Toaster; **Why aren't you reading it!

**Mayu-the-Toaster; **Scroll down already!

**Mayu-the-Toaster; **you are very strange.

**Mayu-the-Toaster; **WHAT'S WITH YOU! GET ON WITH IT ALREADY!

**Mayu-the-Toaster; **The above useless filler was provided by Kaiju. Feel free to pelt the author with a variety of rotten vegetables provided by yours truly.

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Yekano knocked on Kaoru's door for what seemed to him like the hundredth time. 'Open up already!' he growled. When there was no response, he kicked the door savagely, gaining only an excruciating pain in his right foot.

'Kaoru…' he said, frowning.

'Go away…I don't want to talk to you, Yekano.' came the angry reply.

Yekano gritted his teeth in frustration, trying to squash the sudden impulse he had to either barge in and hug her or shake her until her teeth rattled. But, of course, it wouldn't be _proper_…

_Why am I so…utterly, utterly stupid?_ he silently berated himself, starting to pace up and down the hall.

He came to a halt outside of her door again and pressed his ear to the polished wood.

At least she isn't crying anymore…he rubbed his face in frustration, pulling the skin across his cheeks taut in mute chastisement.

A faint, muffled rustling came from inside the room, followed by the "zhwee' sound of metal on metal. He, sitting outside her door, frowned in puzzlement. He leant nearer to the door, trying to work out what the girl was doing in there. He raised an eyebrow as his ears were met with indiscernible muttering.

Cloth rustled quietly again, metal slid on metal, and then all was silent.

Yekano sat still for a few seconds, straining to pick up any other noise.

Nothing.

His eyes widened as a thought struck him.

_She couldn't have…_he thought, pressing his ear against the door.

He heard nothing again.

_she might…! _

Yekano, pushing aside all thoughts of propriety, yanked open the door and sprinted into the dark room.

'Kaoru? Kaoru!' he yelled, trying to locate her through the darkness. There was no response.

'Oh shit!' he yelled. 'Kaoru!'

'…What'd'ya want, 'kano?' a sleepy voice from the bed asked.

He slowly swivelled around, and there, lying on the bed and looking sleepily confused, was Kaoru. Then, as her mind cleared, she narrowed her eyes and flushed angrily.

'YOU JERK! GET OUT!'

'Oooof!'

She slammed the door shut behind him.

Rubbing his side gingerly, he sat up and groaned. Then he frowned and opened the door again, ignoring Kaoru's screech of, 'DO YOU MIND?', quickly searching for anything sharp and pointily dangerous. He drew a nil.

As he caught Kaoru's glare, he shrunk back a bit. 'Sorry, okay? I was just worried about you.'

Kaoru's glare faded slowly into a look of puzzlement. 'Why?'

'Because I heard metal sliding and then everything went still!' he said, trying not to babble.

Kaoru lifted an eyebrow. 'Metal? I don't have any…Oh!' she got up from her bed and crossed over to the opposite wall, and slid the shutter on the oil-lamp open, filling the room with light. It also made a sound akin to 'zwhee'.

'Oh.' he said, flushing.

She lifted an eyebrow, eyes twinkling in amusement. 'Why, Yekano… I didn't know you cared.'

'Shut up.' he snapped, bypassing pink and moving on to magenta. He was just about to stalk away when he remembered his original purpose. He slowly turned back to the bed, where Kaoru was sitting on once again, and slowly walked over and sat beside her, feeling both guilty and awkward.

'Kaoru, I…I didn't mean to be rude. Before, I mean.' he said, biting his lip.

She looked at him silently, gauging his sincerity, then sighed and looked away.

'It's okay. I just…maybe I overreacted a little.'

'Who founded the Kamiya Kasshin style?' he asked abruptly. Then, as if realizing his rudeness, he flushed and added hastily, 'If you don't mind telling me, that is.'

Kaoru glanced at him, then wrapped her arms around herself and closed her eyes.

'My father.' she said simply.

'Ah…Kaoru, I'm really sorry-'

Kaoru cut him off. 'Put it from your mind.' she said calmly.

'I guess I just don't have much experience with people my age.' he mumbled apologetically.

Kaoru shot him a look. 'What do you mean?'

'I just don't leave the house much…'

'Why?'

'My father really doesn't like it when I do.'

'Wh-oh.' she said, remembering the story of his sister.

'Kaoru…could you tell me about your family?' he asked suddenly, turning towards her.

'Huh?' she asked, startled. Then, relaxing a little, she gave a sad half-smile. 'Which one?'

'You have two?'

'Hmmm….you could say that, yes.'

'Both, then.'

'Well…my mother passed away when I was little…I never knew her, really. I can't even remember her face, but Doctor Gensai told me she was very beautiful. My father passed away slightly less than two years ago. I was their only child; and so I inherited the swords-style that my father created.

'For almost a year, I was alone…just me in the house; except when doctor Gensai and his two grandchildren visited. But then…overnight, it seemed, I got a new one.

'At almost the same time, I got an older brother, a younger brother, a sister and…' she shook her head as if to clear her thoughts.

'And what?' questioned Yekano.

'And…a very good friend, I guess…' she trailed off and self-consciously brushed her bangs of off her face.

Yekano looked at her shrewdly. 'You left someone very dear to you back there, didn't you?'

Kaoru looked at him, surprised by his astute statement. Then she smiled.

'Yes.' she answered simply.

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Saito glared at everyone else as he lit his fifth cigarette in five minuets, already surrounded in a thick blanket of foul-smelling smoke.

'If anyone ever talks of this again, I will lock them in the sturdiest cell in Kyoto and let them rot.' he said coldly, glowering with extra emphasis at Sanosuke, who was having a hard time removing the shitake mushroom still stuck in his left ear.

Sanosuke ignored him. 'Damn…mushroom…d'you want a piece of me?' he growled at two young men who were staring at him and sniggering. They ran away hurriedly. 'Damn kids…'

Kenshin sighed, and then looked around. Passing nearby was an elderly man with an equally aged woman.

He walked over to them and asked politely, 'Sessha is sorry for the rudeness, but what is the name of this town?'

The woman smiled at him in obvious amusement. 'This is Hamamatsu, young man.'

Kenshin bowed gratefully and walked back to the group, who were still arguing loudly.

'Um…' he said, trying to attract attention. Only Yahiko noticed.

'-and those cigarettes really stink, too.'

Saito blew another smoke ring. 'And what makes you think I care?'

'You-!'

Kenshin sweatdropped and flapped his hands in an effort to quell the animosity.

'Everyone should calm down…' he said. He was ignored.

'You have got to be the most arrogant basterd I know.' growled Sanosuke, glaring at the former member of the Shinsengumi squad.

Saito merely removed his cigarette briefly and raised an eyebrow slightly, expelling smoke from his mouth in one long stream.

'Moron.'

Sanosuke twitched. 'WHAT WAS THAT YOU MANGY WOLF!'

'Everybody should try to calm down!-'

'Sanosuke, you idiotic Rooster-head!'

'What was that, KITSUNE!'

'SHUT UP!'

Everyone fell silent and turned to look at Yahiko, who was virtually steaming with frustration.

'Kaoru's in danger and all you guys do is argue!' he yelled. 'Now shut up and listen to Kenshin!'

Sanosuke and Megumi looked at each other, cheeks flaming in shame.

'Your right, Chibi-suke.' muttered Sanosuke. Ignoring the seemingly reflexive reply of 'DON'T CALL ME LITTLE!' he turned to Kenshin. 'So, what've you got to say?'

'We're in Hamamatsu apparently.' said Kenshin, a furrow in his brow appearing.

'Umm…so Nagoya's this away?' asked Sanosuke, pointing east.

Kenshin sweatdropped and then pointed north. 'That way.'

'…I knew that! I was… just testing you! Yeah!'

Ignoring Sanosuke, Yahiko turned and scowled at Saito, who had been watching the proceedings with an almost tangible air of indifference.

'So? Are you going to magically whip up another contact so that we can get out of here, or are you going to impersonate a chimney-stack all day?'

'We'll see.' said Saito calmly, blowing a smoke-ring.

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As Sanosuke sauntered morosely down the back-streets of Hamamatsu, he scratched absent-mindedly at his cheek, frowning.

_Why do I get the feeling that I'm being followed?_

He spun around and glared at the street behind him.

_There's nothing there…_

As he turned around again, the hairs on the back of his neck began to stand up. He shivered, and, after casting a glance behind him and seeing nobody, increased his pace.

Behind him, a black cat as large as a medium-sized dog peeked out from behind a pile of assorted trash, and then continued to follow him.

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Over the other side of town, Saito was walking casually down a short, narrow and dusty street with a dead-end. As he reached the door right of the end, he knocked quietly four times, flaking off some of the peeling paint. After no reply was heard, he repeated his knock, slightly louder this time.

Finally, the door creaked open a few inches.

'Who is it?' a rusty voice asked, a threatening undertone made all the more apparent by the fierce glare of one narrowed eye through the gap in the door.

'Its me, Saito, you moron. Who else knows where you live?'

The solitary eye widened in surprise, and the door swung open to reveal a bearded man in western clothes.

'Saito! What are you doing here? I thought you were living in Kyoto with Tokio.'

'Your doorstep is neither comfortable enough nor private enough for this conversation.' Saito said, brushing past the surprised man.

'Oh! Of course…' said the man, following the yellow-eyed man into his own siting-room.

Saito leant against the wall, lit a cigarette and inhaled, closing his eyes. When he opened them, he fixed a piercing stare onto the bearded man, who was watching him intently.

'So, why are you in Nagoya? You always said it was a hell-hole.' he asked Saito finally.

'It was not intentional, believe me, Shinji.'

'More to the point, why are you here?'

'…I'd like some information, if you have it. Do you know of Shojo Kazumi?'

'The oyabun of the Nagoya-district Taikuru yakuza?' Shinji asked, narrowing his eyes.

Saito nodded curtly, motioning for Shinji to go on.

'He does the usual yakuza things…women, alchohol, gambling-houses…although I heard that he started selling opium recently, and Teikura Seta's none to happy about it.'

'Teikura Seta?' asked Saito, making a mental note of the name.

'Yeah…he's the oyabun of the rival yakuza, Danai. Both gangs are situated in Nagoya, but Danai is the one selling cheap opium…or was, anyway.' Shinji took a sip out of a sake cup that had obviously been abandoned when he had gone to open the door.

'Does he have tight security?'

'He didn't use to…but I heard a rumour that Shojo recently acquired a new body-guard. Apparently, the new one's quite strong.'

'Hmmph…' muttered Saito, sounding unimpressed. 'Anything else important?'

'Not that I'm aware of.'

'Well then…thankyou for your time, Shinji. Tokio would probably like you to call on us next time you're around our place.'

'We'll see.' said Shinji, grinning. 'Give her my best, Hajime.'

Saito nodded brusquely and made his way to the door. As he paused with his hand on the handle, he looked back with a neutral expression. 'Take care of yourself, you moron, and try not to get yourself killed. Tokio would be very disappointed.'

Shinji grinned and waved a hand. 'Ditto to you!'

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Sanosuke glanced behind him again.

The awkward feeling on the back of his neck hadn't gone away yet.

_Maybe Megumi put the evil eye on me. I've always had** suspicions **about her…_

As he rounded the corner that led onto a slightly bigger street, he turned to the left, walking towards what was obviously the market-place. He frowned slightly at the gigantic crowd of people which was blocking off the rest of the road.

Pushing his way carefully through the mass of squabbling people, he arrived at the front and saw what the problem was. Or rather, didn't, because of the gigantic expensive-looking black coach that had been parked in the middle of the street, leaving only about a foot of room on each side. Its snoring coachman was seated on the plush coach-box, unconscious of the heavy muttering of the crowd.

He scratched his head in annoyance, then glared at the only doorway in sight.

'Oyrashi Clinic.' the sign read. Sanosuke looked at it for a moment before striding towards it. Pulling open the door, he yelled,

'Oi! Whoever owns this coach, move it already!'

After a few seconds, a man walked into the room and looked at him, eyebrow raised.

'I will move it as soon as I've finished.' he said offensively. He seemed to be viewing Sanosuke through his teeth; a habit which, quite frankly, made him want to punch something quite badly. If that something happened to be the man standing in front of him, then it was all the better.

'Its blocking the street.' he said, trying not to snarl.

The man looked at him condescendingly. 'So?'

'So move it. Everybody needs to get past.'

'So?'

'Are you going to move it or not?' he spat, unconsciously balling his hands into tight fists.

'Ah, let me see…not.' and with that, the man walked back into the next room.

'Then I'll move it for you.' muttered Sanosuke, striding back outside. Once he stood by the carriage again, he surreptitiously loosed the horse from its harness. Handing it to a slightly bewildered bystander, he crept up to the somewhat elderly coachman and leaned forward.

'AAATTTAAACCCKKK!' he bellowed as loudly as he could in the sleeping man's ear.

The man bolted upright, his cap falling off his head and looked around wildly. 'Where!' he yelled in a panic.

'Over THERE!' yelled Sanosuke, pointing down towards the other end of the street. The coachman, still disorientated by his sudden rude awakening, stumbled hurriedly through the confused crowd in the opposite direction.

Sanosuke grinned to himself. He didn't want to admit it…but he was starting to enjoy himself a little.

Waving his hands, he stood up on a nearby barrel and yelled, 'CAN EVERYBODY STAND BACK!'

The crowd complied almost enthusiastically, some at the front retreating as much as ten meters from the lacquered coach.

Sanosuke turned to the coach again, raising his fist in preparation for the Futae no Kawami.

He connected with the frame. In one instant, time seemed to slow, and then the whole frame of the carriage shattered, showering Sanosuke, the crowd, and nearby rooves and houses with broken planks and slivers of wood.

Sanosuke looked at his fist and winced at the sight. _Eh…Megitsune's gonna have my arse on a platter when I get back… _

The whole crowd was silent for a second, caught between the desire to run and the urge to cheer. Most chose the latter, although some tried to do both and found to the detriment of their vertical positioning that they weren't very good at multi-tasking.

Sanosuke smirked at the wreckage of the carriage, then, hearing a strange sound, turned towards the clinic again.

Standing there, with crimson face, was the carriage's owner, slack-jawed and speechless.

'Wha…' he began shakily, as he viewed the wreckage in front of him. 'Wh…'

'Hi!' said Sanosuke cheerfully. 'I'm delighted to let you know that you don't need to move your carriage anymore!'

The mans gaze slowly transferred to the grinning man, becoming almost comically incredulous.

'You…did this…?' he asked.

Sanosuke merely smiled in response.

The man's face bypassed crimson and made its way to a rich burgundy colour. 'How dare you?' he yelled.

'Well…you wouldn't move it.' said Sanosuke noncommittally, stepping over the wreckage and heading off towards the other end of the street. The man followed him, spitting with anger.

'How dare you do this to Shikazu Kiba!'

Sanosuke sighed, choosing to ignore the furious man behind him, and continued on.

_About two hours later…_

'Get lost, will you!' growled Sanosuke, turning momentarily to the irate man stomping along angrily behind him.

'No! I demand FULL compensation!' Shikazu bellowed.

'TOUGH! Your not going to get it, so will you just piss off already!'

'NO! PAY UP!'

'NO! GET KNOTTED!'

'Rooster-head…what are you doing?' a feminine voice asked exasperatedly.

'Trying to lose this idiot!' he growled. then; 'Oh, its you, Kitsune.'

'What took you so long!' Yahiko scowled.

'I got lost…' he said sheepishly. 'And I wish he would too!' he added, jabbing a thumb at Shikazu. He turned to the man behind him, and then raised an eyebrow. Shikazu, for the second time today, was slack-jawed and speechless.

He turned to follow the other man's line of sight, and was somewhat surprised to find that it was firmly fixed on Megumi, who was still glaring daggers at Sanosuke.

'And…and who might you be?' Shikazu asked, rapidly recovering and just as rapidly crossing to the tall, black haired woman, who looked at him with surprise.

'Oh? You bought a gentleman back with you, Rooster-head? I am-'

'That's Kitsune, or Fox-lady.' Sanosuke substituted, smirking.

Shikazu ignored him, gently taking her hand and kissing it. 'My name is Shikazu Kiba, miss.'

'My name, contrary to Rooster-head's statement, is Takani Megumi. Pleased to make your acquaintance, Shikazu-san.'

'Please, call me Kiba, Takani-san.'

'Only if you call me Megumi, Kiba-san.'

Sanosuke coughed loudly, and pretended to vomit into a nearby potted plant. However, the truth was, the sight of Shikazu and Megumi's still entwined hands annoyed him. It annoyed him a bit more than he was willing to admit, in fact…

'If you two have finished making wedding plans, I think we should go now.' he said, slightly more impatiently usual.

He was ignored.

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**Next chapter-Preview **

'I challenge you to a sake duel!' Sanosuke said, smirking.

Yeah, that's all the preview you get. Bad Kaiju, no cookie for you! This is a crappy chapter...IM SO SORRY!

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Ooooooh….I ate too much…I feel ill…AND I HAVE HICCUPS AGAIN GODAMMIT!

Sorry about the late update. I was feeling lazy and had writers block, so I lounged around all week and then on Monday stayed up all night trying to write this chapter properly.

Which I didn't.

Then I snapped the end of my USB and had to type everything again. I'm clumsy, for god's sakes. What more do you expect!

Stupid me…T-T

I'm also almost on the point of a nervous breakdown, because I got my first ever job the other day. Is it normal to get a job first application, first try?

I'm SO so sorry. I really do need some suggestions on how I could write better…and I haven't totally decided on the future of this story. I would love to hear anyone's suggestions, and your reviews cheer me up no end! Really! The help me to write as well, so please, suggestions!

**Review responses! Six! Wow! And I have to say, every single review makes me smile so much for the rest of the day. **

**Flip-flop108_--_**Yay! You reviewed again! THANKYOU SO MUCH! Ooooh, you changed your pen-name? Hehehehehe, I like it! Thankyou THANKYOU **THANKYOU!**

**CHOCOLATE TO ALL REVIEWERS! YAY!**

**Jade Lotus—**Yay! My first ever reviewer reviewed! THANKYOU SO MUCH! Yes, I had overdosed on hyper-pills when I wrote that chapter…Mmm…yummy… (My hyper pills are chocolate éclairs.) **XD** Trust me, its not going to be a typical reunion for them at all. I'm glad you liked the whole look-alike thing; it ties up with the future chapters I'm (trying to be) writing. Its one of the semi-main themes and so is rather important! As to the final question…I, frankly, am torn. I thought it might be interesting if Yekano started to like Kaoru …but then again, I also like the idea of them both thinking they like each other, but then slowly realising that they just care for each other as brother and sister. (because Kaoru has no siblings, and neither has Yekano, they probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference.) . Or maybe something else altogether! What do you think? OPINIONS AND SUGGESTIONS, PEOPLE!

**serabi-** WOO-WHOO!

As you can probably tell, I'm absolutely stoked to hear-um, read you say that! THANKYOU!

**Jasmine blossom625**-Yay! You'll always drop a review? –goes all sparkly-eyed and mushy—promise? As always, thankyou So, SO, sososososo much for your review! –**dances around then falls over Mayu, who is still in the toaster—**You like me…You really like me! **_:D_** Please keep on reading! However, there is going to be an interesting, but sad and bitter-sweet plot-twist coming up for those two…get ready to start hating a few certain characters that I shall introduce shortly…BUT, I shall always –try—to make it funny, and there SHALL be HAPPY E-:is cut off by Mayu, who has hand over authors mouth:

Mayu: SHUT UP, BAKA! YOU'LL GIVE EVERYTHING AWAY:

Me; Mfmmffffffffffffff MMMMMFF FUF!

Mayu; --turns back to Jasmine blossom625—Heheh…um…**XP**

**Winter-dragon- :**gets out gun and shoots self in head I knew something was screwed! But I looked and looked for the "no anonymous reviews" button, and I COULDN'T FIND IT! Thanks for telling me! –Ahem--... Wow! so many good things in your review! Original? YAY! Highly entertaining? ---does the chicken dance—In character? THANK GOODNESS! Funny? Glad you enjoyed my warped sense of humour! And about Kaoru's personality…you do not know how relieved I am to hear you say that. I really am trying to bring Kaoru's character out in this. I think that her personality is stronger than that which is in most of the fanfictions, (please don't be offended:bows repeatedly to mass of angry authors:) but I really like how mixed her personality is. She's not a damn flower, but she's not made of iron either. YAY! KAIJU HAS NO CHEESE!

Oh, and I really like Saito too:grins:…but I just thought that his character was a little too…invulnerable, if you know what I mean…and I wanted to give him a weakness to mess with his mind:snicker: As I said, warped sense of humour…

This review really has me relieved! I was worried about the shitake mushroom thing being way over-the-top. :)

THANKS so, SOOOOO much for you extra-long review! I hope this story lives (?) up to your expectations!

**Evee-chan-** WOW! You like it? Yay! Thankyou! For your review!

Wow! Thirteen reviews in total. And 13/3 equals…um :**grabs calculator:** about four! So there's been an average of four reviews for each chapter…twice what I asked! YAYAYAYAAYAY!

Also, thankyou to the following, who rock my world;

**Eloa; Evee-chan; Winter-dragon; Arwey; Moonlight Star Phoenix; Nocturnal Magic; Universal Fighter; carrotgirl; flip-flop108 AKA psychiChick; kaoru kitten; miniwoo; serabi** and **koneko-dono**, for assorted reasons.

You are AWESOME, PEOPLES! I LOVE YOU ALL! (don't get creeped out, I mean that in a strictly platonic way.) :glomps reviewers:

By the way, I was just wondering about the average age on this site. I've read stories by people from 11 to 23 year-olds, and I really like reading them all…but everyone writes so goodly! And I cant spel gud aattal…

**Vocab;**

sorry about the lapse! I just forgot…

**Oro**-HOW COULD YOU NOT KNOW? If you don't know what 'oro' means, then you are not supposed to be reading this and you are a foolish panda!

**Sessha-**:sighs:… what am I going to do with you? Roughly translated as "this unworthy one" Kenshin refers to himself in this way.

**Kitsune-**sort of like a fox. Believed to have magical powers. Sanosuke's nickname for Megumi.

**Chibi-suke-**Chibi, roughly translated, means small, cute or squirt. "–suke" is a masculine name ending.

**Oyabun-**leader of a yakuza gang.

**Yakuza**-Japanese mafia, if you will.

Ciao!

Nyaaa…:) Kaiju

P.S.

I really would appreciate advice and suggestions. Really, REALLY apreciate. I am feeling incredibly stupid this month (cha, like that's NEW!) and I really do need them. REVIEW ME! I'm only 15! Mental age three!

P.P.S...

I really like Samurai Champloo.

Pointless, but that pretty much sums up my existence.

P.P.P.S

I thrive off reviews. I think of them as bribes to continue. If I don't get reviews, Kaoru will not be set free, you will not meet the antagonist, and Kenshin and Kaoru will not have lots of WAFF moments at the end! I need reviews!

I LIVE off them.

FEED ME! I'm getting jealous here…

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Come on…do you really want me to cark it? Besides, I have self-esteem issues when it comes to writing…Heheh…FEEL THE GUILT!


	5. Chapter 5 dont flame me, please

**BEFORE YOU GO ON! This chapter contains a lot of mindless drivel in the form of Kaiju's "explanitory" notes and general rambling. If you don't wish to waste your time on it, just go to the start of the story…y'know, the place with the "---" and the big bold "START!"? **

**Kaiju;** Hiya! Thankyou for continuing to read after that crappy chapter.

**Mayu**; I'm sorry, **which one** are you talking about?

**Kaiju; :**Whacks Mayu with big stick

**Mayu;** Gyuui…

WOW! 1214 hits! 326 more in just two days! And four reviews already! TT-TT That makes me so happy I could cry!

**Kaiju;** I'd like to introduce some friends of mine. **Mustard Pickle, Omitsu-chan, crackerjack** and **The Ultimate Onigiri**.

**Them;** HI!

**Kaiju;** They're here to…um…

**Onigiri;** Oh great, Kaiju-chan doesn't even know? You practically dragged us here!

**Kaiju;** whacks Onigiri with huge stick Shut up.

**Onigiri; --**dies—

**Omitsu-chan**; Nooooo! Don't die Onigiri! What about our children!

**crackerjack;** --sweatdrops--What children?

**Omitsu-chan;** :whacks crackerjack with Kenshin plushie: shut up, your spoiling my dramatic moment:turns back to Onigiri: Oh, my love, how I will miss you. Each day that passes without your sweet, sweet eyes shining down on me shall be torture. I shall keep your ashes in a ceremonial chamber-pot/urn-

everyone backs away

-and kiss it every day at twelve o'clock in the afternoon; I shall-

**Onigiri;** Hey! I'm not dead!

**Omitsu-chan**; :takes out gun: You soon will be! Serves you right for spoiling my dramatic moment!

**Onigiri;** AAHHHHHHHHHH! RUUUUUUUN!

**Omitsu-chan**; (cynically)**YOU CAN RUN BUT YOU CANT HIDE**:chases after Onigiri:

**Everyone else; :sweatdrop:**

**Kaiju;** Lets just pretend that **never happened**…

**Everyone else;** nodnod

**Kaiju;** ON WITH THE TORTURE!

**Everybody else;** :nodnod:

**Kaiju;** HEY!

**Disclaimer;** what do you think? Do you really think that I'm smart enough to write or talented enough to draw Rurouni Kenshin? If you do, you are a foolish panda!

BEWARE OF THE PANDA:**DUNDUNDUN**:

Panda is such an awesome word… **:D**

**crackerjack; **:sweatdrops: Stay off the sugar. Please. **T-TX**

**Warnings; **Sanosuke's potty mouth, my warped and sorry excuse for a sense of humour, occasional madness/randomninity (I love that word.) and bad plotties…and terrible writing.

With that cheerful announcement, here is the fifth chapter of Dicing with Death. Enjoy (if you can -.-;)

**Warning#2;** Id just like to remind everybody that this IS my very first story…EVER! So please don't be very disappointed if it's bad, and don't flame me. I'm 15 and three months! As I said, mental age 3! -.-Ha…maybe I'm overstating my abilities a bit…make that mental age 2….:cries:

**BEFORE YOU GO ON! SORT OF IMPORTANT!**

**I think the reason for is not only so you can have fun reading other peoples stories or writing your own…I think that it is also meant for bettering your writing skills. As my first fanfiction ever, this is sort of an experimental one; testing out new writing styles and stuff like that. So, if you have any suggestions on how to improve my hopeless writing, please review me or message me. I need all the help I can get:) **

**------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

_**(START!)**_

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Sanosuke glared around at the ornate surroundings, glowering with particular venom at the obviously priceless and amazingly tacky chandeliers that hung from the highly gilded ceiling.

_How the hell did we get here anyway?_ he thought to himself resentfully. He knew that one minuet they had been looking for a coach to Nagoya, and now they were ensconced in the gigantic house of none other that Shikazu Kiba, the biggest numbskull to blight Japan since Tokugawa himself.

The aforementioned numbskull, Shikazu, was, even now, staring almost rapturously at Megumi, oblivious to everyone and everything else.

Again.

For some reason, this, and Megumi's openly flirtatious response, irritated Sanosuke far beyond what even Saito himself could. There was just something about the look in Shikazu's eyes as he stared at Megumi that made his knuckles itch.

Saito was obviously irritated as well, although not for the same reasons.

_What are "the same reasons"?_ a part of Sanosuke wondered, mentally scratching its metaphorical head.

_He's a sleazebag!_ another part yelled.

_He's only staring at her. _a calmer, more reasonable part said.

_He's staring at MY MEGUMI!_

The other two parts metaphorically stared at the third, who allegorically backed away.

_Eh? "my" Megumi?_

_NO! You misheard me!_ said the third part hurriedly. _I said…um…_

_Yes? _said the other two, with figurative smirks on their metaphorical faces

_OH FINE! Yes I said it!_

_Awww…is ickle Sanosuke in love?_

The response was rather impolite.

Sanosuke (the outer) ignored the arguing voices, choosing instead to glare at Shikazu's back as he showed the group a selection of prized antique porcelain vases.

If looks could kill, Shikazu would definitely be six feet under by now.

He bought them to the lounge and motioned for them to sit, then picked up a platter of small round circles, which he offered to Megumi.

'Um…Kiba-san…what are these?' she asked, holding one up.

Shikazu looked surprised, and then amused. 'Crackers. They're edible. Hang on, I'll just get some cheese.'

He got some off of another platter and bought it over, also picking up a knife-like metal implement with a sharp skewer at the opposite end of the handle.

Kenshin sweatdropped.

**_It_ _looks like some sort of obscure implement used for torture…_**thought the Battousai, squinting.

_It does, doesn't it?_

'Shikazu-dono…what is that?' he asked.

'Huh?' Shikazu said, looking puzzled. Then he looked at the implement in his hand. 'Oh, this? Its just something my father invented for skewering cheese. See? Its got a little prick on the end of it.'

Sanosuke looked at him sourly. 'I agree whole-heartedly.' he mumbled.

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Kaoru scowled slightly at Yekano, who was bent double, groaning as he held his stomach; a remnant of the strike she had just given him.

'I swear…' she started, then as Yekano straightened up, she stared at him for a second and then turned away quickly, avoiding eye contact.

_Maybe I'm just trying to substitute Yekano for Yahiko…I'm expecting way too much for a student of three days…_

'Kaoru? What's up?' Yekano asked from behind her, genuine concern in his voice.

She smiled gently, still facing away. _Although he acts much more like a mix of Sanosuke and Kenshin…if that's possible…_

Turning back to Yekano, she smiled reassuringly at him, although her mind was still on the redheaded swordsman. 'Yeah…come on, let's start again.'

'Uh…okay…' said Yekano, eyeing her strangely. He raised his shinai again, and Kaoru did the same.

_I wonder if Kenshin even knows I'm here…_

'Ha!' yelled Yekano. Kaoru blinked as her new pupil appeared in front of her, disrupting her thoughts, then gasped in pain as Yekano's wooden sword connected with her wrist, making her drop her own.

'Kaoru! Are you okay?' he said urgently as he heard her, dropping his own shinai and running forward. He grabbed gently her lower arm and winced as he examined the red welt that was appearing on her pale skin.

'Sorry, sorry! Does it hurt much?'

'No. Its fine, really.' she said, squirming out of his grip and bending down to pick up her shinai. As she tried to lift it, she flinched slightly, then straightened, hoping that Yekano hadn't noticed.

He had, and was glaring at her. 'Oh, yes, I can see it doesn't hurt _at all_.' he said sarcastically. He took her by the arm again and headed towards the corridor outside, leading her along one of the many corridors she had never been down.

'Where are we going?' Kaoru asked, cringing as the pain from the injured wrist started to increase.

'To my father's room for the medical kit.' he growled, turning left and towards a large door at the end of the corridor.

He opened the door and motioned for her to sit on the bed, then started to rummage in one of the bedside cabinets.

She looked around, surprised at the sheer size of the of the room, as well as it's contents. The bed alone was big enough to hold a whole family, and the bedspread and sheets were both richly coloured and beautiful. There was a thick, creamy carpet underfoot as well.

As she was looking around, her eye was caught by a small picture on the bedside table. Glancing surreptitiously at Yekano's back, she picked it up.

It was a painting, with a middle-aged man, a young boy, and…Kaoru raised the tiny picture closer to her eyes…a grey-eyed young woman with black hair….who looked like the mirror image of herself.

A grunt from Yekano's direction roused her, and she hurriedly hid the picture behind her as he straightened up.

'I don't know where he's put the damn thing. Wait a second, I'll just go and ask Kagura-san.' he said, frowning in frustration.

Kaoru smiled at him, hoping that he wouldn't notice the absence of the miniature. He didn't, and left the room, muttering profanities about useless fathers.

Kaoru pulled out the picture and stared at it again, tracing the features of the young woman with the tip of one finger. She raised her eyes slowly-

-and frowned, puzzled, as she saw a blotch of white powder on the floor, almost invisible against the cream-coloured carpet.

She leant down, dipping a finger in the white substance and sniffing it gingerly.

It smelled…familiar…like something she had smelt a long time ago.

Then it clicked.

She had smelt it the first time she had met Megumi.

Opium.

She hurriedly shook off the clinging powder in disgust, wiping her hand on her hakama. Jumping up, she looked more closely at the blotch, and discovered that there were several other traces of powder, leading in an uneven trail towards a small knee-high cabinet against the wall. She walked slowly towards it, then knelt. The door was slightly ajar.

She hesitated as she reached out her hand, unsure of whether she should look inside. She steadied her resolve, and slowly swung the small door open.

Behind another photo and a pile of paper, there were tens of rows of tiny paper packets.

With shaking hands, she reached in and took one out, opening it carefully.

White powder was nestled inside, carefully wrapped. As she stared at it, a sudden sound behind her made her turn, and she flushed with embarrassment as she saw Yekano standing in the doorway, watching her angrily, a small glass bottle and a roll of bandages in his hands. She stood and looked at him from across the room, locking eyes with him and searching his face steadily for a denial, a sign that she had been mistaken about the contents of the tiny packets.

She found none, and, as she looked down at the packages in her hand, and the enormity of what she had found sent a sharp stab of shock, almost physically painful, through her, obliterating every other emotion but one, which was even now constricting her chest and making it hard for her to speak.

Taking a deep breath, she crossed the room abruptly, and looked up from the small packages into his eyes.

'You've got to tell your father to stop!'

Yekano grabbed them, glaring at her. 'Look, I don't like it any more than you do, but it's none of your business!'

'If you don't like it, why don't you tell your father to stop?'

'Do you think I haven't tried!' he said furiously. 'Well I have, and to do so again would just be a waste of time!'

'But surely-'

Yekano cut her off. 'He just doesn't care anymore. He hasn't since Kiore died, and he's not going to any time soon!'

'but-'

'Butt out already!' he snarled, turning his back on her and stuffing the paper-bound packages back into their container.

After glowering at his back for a few seconds, Kaoru walked out.

She headed towards the training room, fists clenched angrily, trying to resist the urge to run back to Kazumi's room and give Yekano a good belt to try to knock some sense into him.

In the training hall, she tried to pick up the shinai she had dropped a short time ago, and growled when a sharp, stabbing pain went through her arm. She glared at her wrist, scowling at the bruised and swollen area, the pain of which had vanished as soon as she opened the small cabinet.

With a sudden surge of frustration, she kicked the shinai hard, making it fly through the air towards the wall, landing with a sharp crack. She strode after it, but then left it and leaned against the storeroom door.

Something warm trickled down her left cheek, and she raised her hand, shocked to find the errant tear. She was even more surprised when another followed, and another, the trickle becoming a fully-fledged downpour. She slumped against the door, cradling her head in her hands, the anger and frustration and sadness she had felt during the past few days finally coming free.

It wasn't only the loss of her 'family' she felt; it was also the strange friendship she was developing with Yekano, and the sudden anger he had shown when she discovered his fathers stash. It was just too much.

She ignored a sudden movement beside her, just wanting to stay there and cry her troubles away. She barely noticed when someone gently took her hand and started to splint her wrist carefully.

After a few minuets, she heard Yekano's voice, uncharacteristically gentle.

'Does your wrist feel better?' he asked.

She said nothing, and he sighed. 'Do you want me to leave you alone?'

She said nothing again.

He said nothing as well, and then she opened her eyes in surprise as she felt him, albeit awkwardly, putting his arm around her.

'Kaoru…I'm sorry for loosing my temper…it just…'

She looked up slowly, then, as the swell of emotions inside threatened to engulf her again, she tentatively leant against him, burying her face in the loose folds of his blue training gi. The feeling, the warmth of the contact, reminded her slightly of Kenshin, and a sudden surge of homesickness overtook her, making her shake uncontrollably as she held tightly onto the young man's gi. She felt his sigh as he patted her back, obviously uncomfortable.

Finally, when she had stopped sobbing, he gently grabbed her chin and made her look up.

'I really am sorry.' he said, looking straight back. 'But the…the stuff that happened today…I get the feeling that that isn't the only thing bothering you.'

'I miss them.' she blurted out, lowering her head.

Yekano, trying to ignore the strange pang he felt as she spoke, pursed his lips.

'I'll tell you what, Kaoru…I'll ask my father…I'll see if I can persuade him to set you free.'

Kaoru looked at him, hope coursing through her body. '…really?'

Yekano smiled, and although a shadow seemed to pass over his face, it was gone in an instant. 'Sure.'

Kaoru impulsively hugged him, then let go, flushing vividly. 'Thankyou.' she said softly, looking down.

Yekano stood up, not looking at her, and walked out.

She took a deep breath, revelling in the sudden relief she was experiencing. Then she frowned, remembering the fleeting look of pain his face had held.

_Yekano…_ she thought

Outside, Yekano leaned against the other side of the door. He tried to quell the sudden tightness that had been constricting his chest ever since he had seen Kaoru, drug-filled packages in hand, mutely pleading for him to tell her that she was wrong, to tell her that it wasn't what she thought…

…her look mixing with one of accusal and betrayal.

He wondered why the tension in his chest had increased drastically when Kaoru had looked at him, hope suddenly shining in her eyes, when he told her that he would try to restore her to her family.

As he walked towards his room, suddenly exhausted, he felt a sudden rush of jealousy as he remembered the "special friend" that she had mentioned the day before.

_What's so special about him, anyway?_

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_At a small restaurant on the outskirts of Nagoya…_

Teikura Seta gingerly stepped around the grimy tables and chairs, carefully avoiding any of their occupants and searching for a familiar profile.

As he reached the very corner of the room, a voice emanated out from the gloom, making him jump slightly.

'You're late.'

He squinted, trying to see through the darkness to the speaker. When his eyes adjusted to the dark shadows, he sat down on a chair opposite the cloaked man.

'I was delayed, Ryo.' he said, watching his cousin warily.

'Hmph.'

'So, you had a plan?'

'Hang on.' Ryo said, holding up a hand, barely discernable in the darkness. 'We still have to wait for someone.'

'This is supposed to be just between us!' hissed Seta, slamming his hand down on the table.

'Quiet!' snarled his cousin, looking around cautiously. When he was certain that they had attracted no eavesdroppers, he continued quietly. 'This man is trustworthy, I assure you.'

'Indeed I am.'

Both men jumped violently at the third voice, the speaker of which had crept up on them without notice, his silhouette hard to distinguish through the shadows.

'You look surprised.' the newcomer said, dark amusement in his voice. He swung a seat from a nearby table and placed it next to the other two, the whole process soundless. 'Don't worry. If I had wanted to kill you, you would already be dead.'

'How…comforting.' mumbled Seta. In the darkness, he could see the whites of the other mans eyes gleam…and there was an expression in them that he didn't like...it reminded him of a cat which, after years of pursuit, had finally caught the mouse that had tantalised him for years…

You knew what was going to happen to the mouse.

He shook this disturbing thought from his mind in time to hear his cousin say, 'This is Narasuma Yirio. Narasuma-san has come to assist us.'

Seta viewed Narasuma with barely veiled suspicion. 'Why?'

'Actually, that is a question that I would like to know the answer to as well.' Ryo said, watching Narasuma carefully.

The man raised an eyebrow. 'Revenge.' he said, and Seta shivered at the tone in his voice.

'On who and why?'

Narasuma smirked darkly. 'What a nasty, suspicious mind you have there. On Kazumi and his family, first and foremost. And, before I answer your second question, tell me why **you** want revenge, Ryo-san?'

'Hm…well, it probably wouldn't hurt to tell you. Kazumi killed my daughter.' Ryo said blandly, without a trace of sorrow visible on his face.

'Ah. So, Ryo-san wants revenge, and Seta-san wants to get his market back.'

'How did you know that?' asked Seta, trying not to panic as the dark stare turned upon him.

'Everyone knows, you fool.' Ryo answered for Narasuma contemptuously. He turned to the other man. 'You said you could find a way for us to get into Shojo Mansion?'

Narasuma considered him, and then took a piece of parchment from his satchel, which he had dropped by his feet.

Spreading it out on the table, he pointed to one section.

'Shojo Kazumi kept possible invasion in mind when he built the mansion. However, his now deceased wife held a passion for light, and so he incorporated many large windows in the design, but he put them high up, as an extra precaution. Fifteen years ago, getting into them would have been impossible…but with all this western technology flooding in, it will be easy.'

He looked at the other two. 'I assume you both have five trusted men each?'

They both nodded.

'Those men will subdue whatever resistance occurs inside the house.' he concluded.

Ryo was the first to break the silence. 'Sounds like a good one to me.' he said, standing up and stretching. 'How do we contact each other?'

'We give each other our addresses.'

Seta surveyed the other man narrowly, then scrawled something on a scrap of parchment with the offered brush and ink. He passed it over to Narasuma slowly, taking the scrap of paper offered in return.

'When?' he asked quickly, leaning forward.

'Three days.'

There was an intake of breath from Ryo's corner. 'So soon?'

The other man smirked darkly, leaning forward.

'As the saying goes; strike while the iron is hot.'

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Shojo Kazumi stared out to see, watching the waves as they crashed inexorably onto the sandy beach, disturbing or depositing the occasional clumps of seaweed.

He wasn't really seeing the sea, at least not in the present. His mind was focused on a day in late spring, almost twenty years ago.

"_Kazumi-san…Kazumi-san! Over here!" a young girl yelled, oblivious to the disapproving stares of an elderly couple of passing matrons._

"_Coming, Anzu-chan!" Kazumi yelled back, smiling broadly. He shielded his eyes from the sun, his gaze firmly settled on the brightly-coloured figure waving to him. He shifted the heavy basket in his hand to a more comfortable position and continued on, making his way carefully around the rocks and dodging a few errant waves as they threatened to sweep him away, basket and all. _

"_You're such a slowcoach!" Anzu said. She ran back and grabbed the basket herself; deaf to all of his protests, she carried it up to a natural formation of rocks which sheltered them from the sandy wind. _

"_Anzu-chan! Slow down, you'll rip your new kimono!"_

"_I don't care!" the young woman called back, using the various blemishes in the rock to climb to a higher shelf. When she reached one she liked, she whipped out the blanket that had been carefully packed into the basket, also tipping several other things out on to the ground as well. _

_Kazumi, who had just about reached her, looked up just in time to dodge an onigiri that was on a direct flight course towards his forehead._

_He raised himself up over the edge cautiously, wary of any other projectile edibles, and stifled a laugh at the sight of the young woman pouting as she sat on the blanket, surveying the ohagi with dismay._

"_What's wrong?" he asked her, sitting down beside her._

"_The ohagi's dirty." she sulked, then threw it over the edge._

"_And I worked so hard to make it too."_

"_Its okay…" he said, as he pulled out the rest of the food. _

"_Bah…"_

_He laughed at the sour expression on the face of the daughter of his oldest friend. "You look like a little kid."_

_He was unprepared for the sudden, piercing look that she threw him. After a few seconds, she turned away, a wry smile twisting her lips. _

"_And that's all I'll ever be to you, isn't it…?" she said this so quietly that Kazumi barely heard it at all._

"_Huh?"_

_She turned back to him, smiling her ordinary, dazzling smile again. "Nothing, Kazumi-san."_

_He felt an odd lurch at her smile, and turned away under the pretence of finding the miso in an effort to collect his thoughts._

_As they walked back up the beach together, he mused on his reaction; wondering what it could possibly mean. _

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A few months later…

"_Why not!" she cried, her eyes blazing as she turned to face him. "I love you!"_

"_Anzu…"_

_He knew he would never be able to explain what he felt. _

_Kazumi loved Anzu…just as much as she loved him…but he could not…would not… bring himself to openly return her feelings._

_Mai, his previous wife, had died in childbirth, bringing forth his only son into the world. Their marriage had been a loveless one, made out of the necessity to meld the fortunes of two prominent families in order to preserve the prestige of both. They had both been foolish then, hoping that time could help them learn to love each other…but that time had proven them wrong._

_Now, confronted with the sensation for the first time, he was loath to act upon it. Mai's death had always weighed heavily on him; ultimately, it was his fault; What if the same happened to Anzu?_

"_I just couldn't take it…" he murmured out loud._

_Anzu, however, heard him. "Am I…am I really so …that it's distasteful for you to even **think** about loving me?" she asked, her grey eyes shining with suppressed emotion._

_He reached out towards her, then let his hands drop to his sides; thinking, knowing that it would be better if she gave up on him. Her shoulders slumped in defeat, and she turned away listlessly, staring out into the raging ocean that seemed to be mirroring the internal turmoil of both._

"_The passage of the waves in inexorable…it would be impossible to stop it, even if you tried your hardest." she turned back to him, a single tear slowly meandering down her cheek._

"_I cant live without you, Kazumi." she said simply. 'That is what this feeling; this love for you is like. I couldn't stop these feelings even if I wanted to.'_

_She gave him a watery smile and turned away, walking towards the row of houses next to the shore, her long, brown hair blowing around her in the wind._

"_Goodbye, Kazumi…" she said, as he watched her walk away. _

_Her last words were almost indiscernible in the wind. "…for ever…"_

_Kazumi watched her until she disappeared over the crest of the hill, the tears he held in stinging his eyes and making it impossible to speak, even if he had had anything to say._

'_She never wants to see me again…' he thought to himself. The tears that he had tried so hard to hold in started to fall, wetting his cheeks; each one a tribute to the silent agony he held within him._

_He turned and walked the other way, not caring where he went._

_-------------_

Kazumi blinked back the stinging sensation that had appeared in his eyes. He turned away from the surf, staring at the very rock where he had seen her last; on the day she had said goodbye

He had never seen her again.

The next day, a telegram had come from her father, Teikura, accusing him of killing her. Kazumi, fear clenching his heart in an iron fist, rode over to his friends house to find out what had happened.

Teikura didn't even allow him entry. He instructed his guards to keep Kazumi out, and not to talk to him.

Kazumi eventually bribed one of the guards to tell him what was going on.

The information he had received had shattered his already broken heart.

The guard told him that Anzu had thrown herself off of Nakuma bridge at night, just after she had come back to the house after the ordeal at the beach. She had written a note, explaining her choice, and then left…in the truest sense of the word.

It was as though, with the realisation that Anzu, the only person he had truly loved, was dead, a part of Kazumi died also. The only time when he even smiled was when his children were around; otherwise, he was just as ice-cold and unemotional as stone.

When his daughter had died as well, a further part of Kazumi perished. He rarely smiled, bestowing the favour only occasionally on his son. To anyone else, a solid exterior remained; a natural barrier which had never been broken…

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(FINISH!)

How's that for a load of crap? I hope Kazumi's reflection clears up a few things; and I really hope it wasn't overdone…T.T;; this chapter killed me. Not nearly as many happy feelings in it. Makes me grumpy. :cries: no laughs…WAAAAHHHHHHH!

You can probably tell, I'm absolutely no good at depressing thoughts. No matter how hard I try, I never can do it right!

For example, one of my friends introduced me this way. 'This is Theo. Yes, Theo's always happy. Theo never gets depressed.' here he looked at me. 'In fact, it's a little depressing how Theo doesn't get depressed.'

I hope this chapter clarified a few things. Next chapter, I'll do a little on Narasuma Yirio's past. I just hate it when people say "This man is bad. Period." without explaining why. Surely there has to be a reason?

AAGGGHHHH! I didn't have time to write the sake duel scene this time!

I promise it for next time tho! -x-

So, you finally get to meet the main antagonist… :) C'mon, give me some tips or suggestions or something! Doesn't ANYONE have any wishes as to the outcome of the story? Or …do you just not care…? **:sniff:**

Oh, and I didn't mean what Sanosuke said about Tokugawa. I just couldn't think of anyone else…XD

I thought I'd better go over the characters I created, just in case; TT-TT

**Shojo Kazumi-** The oyabun of the Nagoya-district Taikuru yakuza. Hired Kaoru (under duress) as his bodyguard. Feels attached to Kaoru because she looks like his daughter (long dead) Kiore.

**Shojo Yekano**-Kazumi's son. Similar to Yahiko, he wants strength; but he wants it so that his father will stop coddling him. He doesn't remember his sister very much; but he still feels a connection to Kaoru, much like his father.

**Masumau Kagura**-maid servant.

**Teikura Seta**- the oyabun of the rival yakuza, Danai. Is out for revenge because Shojo Kazumi started selling cheap opium as well.

**Teikura Ryo**-He wants revenge on Kazumi because he thinks Shojo killed his daughter.

**Narasuma Yirio**-wants to kill Kazumi for reasons unknown.

**Review Responses**; WOW! Four reviews in two days:cries:) ;) :) :D XD …Maybe the guilt approach is working after all!

**gabyhyatt;** Ooooooh...a new reviewer! YAY! Thankyou so much! I'm glad you liked the story! Have a cookie!

**jasmineblossom625**; It...wasn't crappy...:glomphs jasmineblossom625: THANKYOU:) I'm so glad that you enjoyed it:sniff: so happy! Here's your update! And a cookie!

**flipflop108;** YAY! You reviewed! Heheh...THANKYOU! Your penname is back to NORMAL! I still like it both ways tho:) Cookies for you too, Flipflop-kun!

**Evee-chan;** You reviewed again! Im so happy! THANKYOU so, so so so so so so much! Thankyou! A big chockie cookie just for you, Evee-chan!

Ah...is it just me or am I getting very repetitive here...? wow…so many exclamation points. (!)

Thankyou so much to everyone who reviewed or did anything. Such as reading this story to the end without flaming it as soon as you read the first mindless babble-fluff filled sentance. Everyone gets a cookie!

Ah...your reviews make me so happy!

They relieve some of the annoyance I've been feeling since I found out that my pay was only 7.50 an hour...AGGGGRRGHHHHH! Stupid John Howard and his crappy schemes! throws darts

Yes, I throw darts to relieve stress.

It helps even more if I paste up the picture of my anoyee on the dartboard first, tho... :D

:throws dart: SCORE! Right on his nose!

-ahem-

I love you all, readers AND reviewers…I just love my reviewers more, is all. XD

:glomphs everyone in sight:

Come on, your so close…!

Clicky clicky!

You want to…

You want to…

You want to…

CLICK THAT REVIEW BOX!

Make me smile! Bribe me! Give me suggestions on bettering this sorry excuse for a fanfiction!

Oh yeah….and…

**This chapter is dedicated to my sanity, which has completely disappeared since I started writing this story; in the vain hopes that it will be appeased and come back to me.**

**But then again, maybe I don't miss it all that much anyway…-.-;**

**FOLLOW THE NOT-SO-POINTY ARROW! **

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	6. So SORRY!

Hi everybody! Its Kaiju here. I'm sorry about the delay, and I'm even more sorry about the fact that the delay might just be going on a little while longer. Y'see, the computer I was using to write Dicing with Death …it…um…exploded …slightly. So its now useless, and the only other computer we have is my fathers laptop, and he's a stingy basterd.

So, it might be a small, tinsy, little microscopic while until I can update again.

::bows:: Please forgive me!

In the meantime, suggestions, advice, praise and constructive criticism would be highly appreciated.

If you think the story's crappy, review so. But, if you do, don't just say 'This is craptacular.' Please tell my WHY.

I love you all, really, so I'm going to be trying to earn enough money ($1400) to buy a new one, so I can write again. Please be patient!

And review on the story, so I know what you people want!

Thankyou so very much to the six people who reviewed, I will thank you properly in the next chapter I post.

:GLOMPS EVERYONE::


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